It’s the Beginning of Garden Season!!!

It’s that time of year when I fix up the yard and plant up the planters!  Last year, we bought these troughs with a built in drainage hole. I covered the area in front of the hole with bricks and landscaping material.  Not everything we planted there grew well, but those things not hanging over the edge, really did.  

So this year I am trying something new,  a bean arch. This is honestly made out of scraps.  Some T posts that my son brought home from an old construction job and some old wire left over from a dog pen. I pushed the t posts as far down in the bed as I could and then stretched the wire over the sides.  Then zip ties to connect and we are on way!! I planted pole beans on both sides of this structure. 

Outside of that I planted a variety of peppers.  I still need to get a few more pepper plants for the far bed.  This mixed harvest gardening worked well before and hoping it will again. 

In the trough closest to the porch, I planted Brussel sprouts.  I haven’t grown those before, but if you know me, I have to try everything! Around that, yep, more peppers. 

In the planters on the porch I started each with a few pansies, followed by mixed flowers and greenery. Then another few sets of peppers and the last of the tomato plants. I still have one planter to go, but we will see how this flows!! Excited to see the season’s future harvest!! 

The Hanging Tomato Experiment

I’ve landed tomatoes in several locations the last few years.  We realized last year that the ones we placed in the planters and hanging baskets did well,  with little work to steak them.  So this year with Frankie’s help,  we read up a bit and are having a hanging tomatoes experiment!! 

Frankie started off with these metal buckets he found at a deal. 

He then cut a 3 inch hole in the bottom of each. Then sprayed it with some type of rust spray.  I know it’s a chemical, but I take the help that I can when he wants to help. 

He then put this rubber like tube on it so there are no cut fingers.  Yep, his idea.  

Then it’s time to put the tomatoes in. To keep the rootball from falling out, I put one in then some garden waste, aka old twigs from the winter garden. Then the other plant on top.  I then filled each pot up with equal soil and mushroom compost. 

There’s a variety of tomatoes hanging on the porch and a few in the rail planters.  I will update you in a month or so on how this is going!!  Getting excited already! 

Free Motion Quilting Academy

At the beginning of 2020 I started a program called Free Motion Quilting academy Thru the String and Story blog.  Holly, a young quilter who I follow is the blogger.   Well, in the last year she has become very popular! She has had a big, successful program and now has a large following.  

 Me, on the other hand, I have felt less success from her program.  Mostly, because the entire COVID year of 2020 took over this nurses life.  I am a self-taught free motion quilter and a little experienced.  I took this class to improve and expand my skills.   I started off well.  Not at the pace I wanted, because it started during my project quilting time, but that did give me a jump start at completing a few quilts and modules.

Jump forward a little over a year and the worst of the COVID nightmare I hope.  Things are starting to flow for me and work is slowing down.  So I made myself a goal and project list for 2021.  I initially did not put finishing this class on it, but now, I am.  So along with one of those goals here I am.  This quilt is the Ultimate beginner quilt by fat quarter shop.  

I am going to go thru the blocks on the quilt, one by one to show what designs I did in the program and my current feeling.

This first block highlights the pattern “Ripply River” in the points and Woodgrain between. The sashing highlights continuous loops and some swirls at intersections. 

The inner block is a “swirl”, then “ribbon candy”, followed by “spiral chains”. 

This shows an entire block of “embellished squares”.  I soo like this design but need to get a Rythm, that I don’t have.. 

The center of this block was done in “Filled Swirls” and the outer in “hooked swirls”

This is another “embellished squares” with “double curves”. The sashing is a basic loop and swirls.

In this one you can see the “paisleys” down the Arrows and “pebbles” in the center and outer. 

The center is imitating ruler work, but free handed instead 

The rows in this block rotate from switch back to basic loops aka telephone cord loops. 

So this block contains the stitch I struggle most with the most, embellished continuous curves in the 4 patches.  I just can’t get my rhythm.  Then I did the loops in the triangles. 

In this block I filled it with lots and lots of hooked swirls.  I think I’m pretty decent at these. 

And for the last of 12 blocks, we have a block full of wishbones!! I sooo love how these look and honestly use them a lot!! 

I still have a lot to do and really, a lot to prefect in FMQ, but the more I do it, the better I get!! 

All of these photos were taken at Mepkin Abbey,  it’s sooo peaceful and I love the many spaces that complement quilts. 

Viewing The Stars from the houses made up of Masks!

So not sure what to title this quilt.  A Quilt full of scraps from my bin, but mostly from the leftover pieces from about a thousand masks! So there’s the title.  Describing everyone’s last year. 

Last year, Kim Lapacek of Persimmon Dreams gave out a monthly scrap quilt challenge. Well the Pandemic  lockdowns started in March and everyone was stuck at home.  So the April theme then became houses.  

As we were all stuck at home, my life became engulfed in work and mask making. Thus creating another pile of scraps.  And with my goal for 2020 to use up my scraps, this did not help.  

Then a month later I got my Accuquilt cutter and soon later found a deal on a 6 inch Qube.  The pattern and idea struck me.  Yep, another Terry Original. 

     So for a leader and ended project, another quilt began.  Initially with the simple house blocks. 3.5 inch squares and 1.5 x 3.5 inch flying geese sewn on top.  A very simple house. 

Then I decided they needed something a little simpler, less busy with more open space.  The star idea then appeared. To make them, I sewed the cut off triangles onto the corners of 3.5 inch background pieces.  Then flipped them and squared up each block.  Just making a basic wonky star quilt block. 

This quilt has a lot of small pieces, 1230 to be exact.  Yep, lots of work, lots of scraps and a lot of blessings from God! 

Honestly my greatest form of recycling.  Some donated unwanted fabric and all my leftovers.  In a place that God speaks to me.  We survived 2020!! 

Ultimate Beginner Quilt Finally Finished!!

Last year, I taught a group of beginning sewers this class!! They are now quilters!! We did it as a weekly block class.  So in normal Terry fashion,  I made one too, actually 2!!

This was actually a sew along I linked below that was put on by the Fat Quarter shop.  They did it in the fall of 2019 and we did it at the end of 2019. 

https://blog.fatquartershop.com/beginner-quilt-sew-along/

The class went along with a selection of videos that taught beginner hints and step by step piecing.  The perfect series for a quilting beginner.  I actually stepped back and learned a bit! 

In my quilt,  I used all batik scraps,  with the exception  of the inner sashing, but still it was a larger scrap. Even the outer border, binding and backing were scrap and leftover pieces! You know I love a scrappy quilt!! 

I made this quilt with 3 extra blocks.  2 of the blocks are versions of those already in the quilt and one a large 36 patch or if you want to say, four 9 patches. The other quilt was just a little too small to be functional for me. 

To quilt it,  I decided to step back into the class I signed up for in the beginning of 2020 before Covid.  Before mask making began.  I worked thru the program periodically thru the last year.  Now I really want to finish it before this year is out.  We will see! This is the perfect piece to jump start. 

I really got several motifs done in this quilt.  And I am hoping to repeat in the next 2 charity quilts I do.  As many of us know repetitive action build perfection.  Well maybe not perfection, but improved skills!

So here is the finished project.  Over a year in the making.  Another one off this years UFO list. Still, so many more too go! 

All of these photos were taken at a local monastery, Mepkin Abbey.  A beautiful place full of peace!! Look at the awesome natural wood carvings. 

Project Quilting Round Up!!

Here is a review of all the 2021 Project Quilting challenges in Review!! 

Challenge #1- Illuminating and Ultimate Gray.  The pan atone color of the year challenge. 

Challenge #2- Fussy Cut and my smallest finish! 

Challenge #3- Virtual Vacation- I so want to take a trip out west!!

Challenge #4- The snail trail block and my modern improv piece, interpreting the old block. 

Challenge #5- You’re Crazy.  A challenge themed on crazy quilts!! So I made this awesome Jean Pocket Quilt! 

Challenge #6- Ab Intra- A Latin phrase “from within”. By far the hardest to come up with an idea. A quilt made with old embroidery blocks.  And of course some vintage material. 

     I sooo love how project quilting and his it gives me the desire to get things done.  There are Still a few scrappy challenges left from last year! So it will give me a few things to do until next year!!