It's A Finish!

Scrappy Squares is done--well, all except for the label :)

This was #10 on my 2018 UFO List :) I used lots of scraps for the center portion, added a border of leftover stars from Barbara Brackman's Stars in a Time Warp SAL and framed it all with a repro feather border.

The center is made up of 9-patch blocks containing 2-1/2" squares, 1" x 2-1/2" logs and 1" squares. My inspiration came from Edyta Sitar's book, Little Handfuls of Scraps.

 

That striped fabric in between the stars is like following a trail around the quilt.   

Isn't that feather fabric wonderful? It's Windham Fabrics and the State Museum of Pennsylvania's Wm. Penn's Vision c. 1820 #25494.

I used a small Baptist Fan stencil for the border. 

The quilting shows up better from the back. 
   

 

I'll sew the label on after I wash the quilt next week.

Do you keep track of your projects from start to finish? I do. Here are the stats for Scrappy Squares: 

Started 4/19/17
Top done 6/23/17
Basted for quilting exactly 1 year later 6/23/18 
Started quilting 6/26/18
Quilting done and binding on 10/24/18 
A total of 69 quilting hours

The finished size is 56" x 56."
Check it off the list :)

Hope you're having a great week!



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Copyright 2018, Barbara Schaffer

Celebrating 300 Years

A couple of weeks ago friends and I went on a tour of the Whippany Burying Yard in Whippany, NJ, in celebration of its founding in 1718. It's a small cemetery--a little over 2 acres--containing about 300 markers from the early 18th to the 20th century. 

It is listed on both the State and National Register of Historic Places and is the oldest cemetery in northwest NJ. There are 11 Revolutionary War veterans interred there as well as 9 Civil War veterans.

A laminated map at the entrance indicates where all the graves are located. 

 

Of special interest is the grave of Abraham Kitchel who d. 1741. He was an early settler of Whippany and one of the 6 original judges of Morris County in 1739. He is also a 9th generation ancestor of Barbara Bush. 

It was schoolmaster John Richards who donated the lands for the burying yard and the first to be buried there in 1718. It is the oldest gravestone in the cemetery and was preserved in a granite monument by his descendants in 1914. 

One of my all time favorite gravestones is this one of John Bigelow, a skilled wood worker. The carving of the winged cherub is the most intricate and ornate in the burying yard. The gravestone was refurbished in 2002.

Joseph Tuttle was a blacksmith and a Colonel in the Morris County Militia in the French and Indian War. His grave is in the only horizontal vault above ground.

It was recently restored.

An interesting support frame protects the gravestone of Mary Sheldron who died in 1827 at age 53.

 

It was the first time I'd ever seen an American Beautyberry bush. Love that magenta!

Happy Quilting!




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Copyright 2018, Barbara Schaffer

October Mini

What was GSQ's BOM for September ultimately became my October mini :)

It's called Spiral Log Cabin. The fabric requirements were white, white on white, or white with black pattern; black, black on black, or black with white pattern. The white/black print was Natalie's :)

I can't tell you how long I'd been saving these fabrics but my guess is at least 20 years. It was back when I was trying to transition from cutting individual squares to sewing strips that were cut and stitched into checkerboards. Unfortunately, I never found a use for them--that is, until now. Finally!
 

I did have to take apart the checkered strips to make the border. But it still needed something else so I added a little dog :)  

Wow, the stripes on the back are actually in line with the binding, lol! The finished quilt is 19" x 19". 

Lately, I've been using the same binding fabric to frame the label. I think it's a nice finishing touch. 

I see Wendy's posted her fantastic mini. Take a look!



 
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Copyright 2018, Barbara Schaffer

Strips, Scraps, and Squares

It's time to tackle the overflowing scrap bins!

I've got some new projects in the works :)

With a medallion quilt in mind I started making these blocks for one of the outer borders but wasn't happy with the way they turned out. They may end up as a small quilt.

 

This is my second try. I'm using large prints in 2" strips with 9-patches in the centers. Certainly a busy look but I like them so much better. The finished blocks are 6". 

I also wanted to make something quick and easy with all the strips I have in my scrap bins. I downloaded this pattern on Etsy. It's Saranac by Karen Griska. I knew it was the one for me!

I swapped out the 16-patches as the starting point and substituted 4-patches instead. I already had a supply of 2" squares.   

These are so easy to make. I began by using scrap strips according to their varying widths but am leaning more toward consistency and cutting them all 1-1/2". The key is to alternate dark/light/dark. My finished block size is 10". 

And wouldn't you know . . . 

Our guild's November BOM is 'Diagonal Sticks.' It's string pieced on a foundation that's 9" x 13."  Another fun one to make!

Have a great week!




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Copyright 2018, Barbara Schaffer



 

Antebellum 9, Johan Strubbe, DD Blocks

Oh what fun! Antebellum #9 Lexington Belle is done :) 

I made this block in memory of my maternal 2nd gr-grandfather, Johan Heinrich Friedrich Strubbe, who was b. June 28, 1819 in Harpenfeld, Germany. 

I found this wonderful bird inking on Pinterest . . .

. . . and used it for the center of this block.

About 8 years ago when I was researching my Strubbe ancestors, I had a pleasant surprise when I found a Post 'Em Note on my Another Davis Family Tree on RootsWeb. It was from Anke Waldeman in Germany. She and some other researchers were tracking families who had emigrated from Harpenfeld to the U.S. and provided me with names and dates of my 2nd gr-grandfather's siblings and parents. Johan never came to the U.S. but some of his children did including my gr-grandfather Heinrich Wilhelm aka William Henry Strubbe.

My journey led me to the graves of relatives who were buried in a cemetery only 5 minutes from our house. Who knew?? And I met a 3rd cousin who was a descendant of Eleanor Strubbe, my gr-grandfather's sister. When I was done (though never really done, lol!) I gave my brother a binder with all the info I had gathered. 

On another note I continue to make Dear Daughter blocks (Sentimental Stitches) and try to focus on those that were originally made in NJ. 

Oops! Not NJ but I liked the pattern :)

Originally made by Ann F. Randolph, New Market, NJ and "Peased" in Wisconsin Fulton Co. 1850.

And this was originally made by Elizabeth Dunham, Piscataway, NJ 1852. I'm still enjoying these small appliques. The blocks are 8". 

Lastly . . . 

Our guild's October BOM was called Birch Block. It was super simple to make. Three striped strips on a bright solid color background. I turned it in at Monday night's meeting but didn't win the raffle. Some lucky person got all 37!

Have a great week!

P.S. Is anyone else not receiving emails when comments are posted? I noticed it yesterday. 




Copyright 2018, Barbara Schaffer

Out and About

We're up in the north country for some leaf peeping and fun activities.

Out for an early morning walk. 

Sunrise looking west . . .  

. . . and sunrise looking east.   

On to Sugar House Creamery where cheeses are handmade and aged in an underground cave.  

And look at the pumpkins around the silos at Asgaard Farm & Dairy known for its award-winning goat cheese.     

Meet Hazel :)

On the back roads the foliage was beautiful . . .   

. . . especially at Franklin Falls where my daughter and I had paddled a few years ago.

We rode the Adirondack-themed Carousel in Saranac Lake . . .

. . . where all the animals (24 of them) were made by carvers both local and from across the country. 

The fox was a favorite.

And so was the otter :)

Driving through the 'Notch' . . . 

. . . the scenery was spectacular.

A hay bale 'snow' man.

The view at Whiteface Mountain Ski Area was the end to a perfect outing :)

Thanks for coming along!

Happy Fall!




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Copyright 2018, Barbara Schaffer