July Mini & Strings Update

Greetings from hot and humid NJ! 

Here's my July mini aka Mystery Mola :)

Would you believe this piece was in my grandkids' toy bin (yes! toy bin) at the cabin?? They are now teenagers and no one knows where it came from so I took it, lol! It may have been cut from a garment or tote. 

 

I quilted in all the narrow black spaces around every leaf and flower.    

I'm a big fan of using masking tape whenever possible. It's easy and gives a nice straight edge to follow.

Pretty good match, huh? I found these solid colors at our LQS. 

Here's a detail of the center. Note the long stems and flowering branches.

The finished piece. 

Rachel helped me choose the fabric for the back. I think it's perfect :)

Check out Wendy's blog to see her mini--and more.

__________

As for my Strings update and link-up with Lori at Humble Quilts . . . 

. . . this quilt is actually done except for the label. I'll have better pics next month :)

 

Have a great week!

__________

Copyright 2019, Barbara Schaffer 

New Project

And just like that! I started a new project :)

As soon as I saw this quilt on Pinterest I knew it was one I wanted to make. I love the quirkiness especially the scrappy look and the odd color scheme--purples, blacks, madders, etc. 

I'm working more toward achieving the "look" but not getting fanatical about trying to reproduce the fabrics. First off--purple/lavender. I've had this piece for years so that's where I began. 

 Second--that small scrap of yellow makes this block sing. 

All the pieces are based on 2" except for the cross in the center which is 1". The finished block is 9".

I have a hard time when things aren't balanced especially like that lower right triangle because it isn't black. Such an odd mixture of fabrics.

The first four blocks up on my wall. I'm already on a quest to find sashing fabric :)

__________

Thank you for your concern about the injured bird I picked up last week. She didn't respond to treatment and was euthanized on Saturday.  

So glad that heatwave is over! We're heading to the shore tomorrow for my husband's birthday :) 




__________
Copyright 2019, Barbara Schaffer




  

Flicker and Dutch Panel

For some reason I changed my walking route Sunday morning and decided to go the back way along a busy road and I'm so glad I did!

I hadn't gone very far when I saw this beautiful Northern Flicker in the road unable to walk or fly. So I picked it up, brought it home and put it in a box with a towel.

I called The Raptor Trust which provides free care and assistance to injured birds and is located only about a half hour from our house. When the bird was admitted I was told I could check on it after 48 hours. Here's the update and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she will improve:

"The Flicker is still currently in our care. She is suffering from
central nervous system damage with her legs out which means head
trauma or spinal injury due to the impact. We are giving her
supportive care and she is on anti-inflammatory meds. Her condition
is guarded and we need a little more time to see if she can rally from
her condition. Thank you for checking in." 

There are also resident birds on the grounds including this majestic Bald Eagle. Uno was found in Alaska in 1989 with an eye injury that prevented her from being able to hunt. If you are ever in the area of The Great Swamp in Morris County make sure you visit The Raptor Trust :)

 

__________

Quilting news . . . 

I managed to baste my Dutch Panel quilt while we were at the cabin :)

I bought some new fabric. The two at the top were bargains at the thrift shop and the yellow / green assortment caught my eye on Ebay.

It's not easy finding good greens--or yellows for that matter. But check the selvage on the yellow--Chrome is misspelled Chorme!

We're in a heatwave--are you?

__________

Copyright 2019, Barbara Schafffer

 

Money Cakes and a Hike

My twin grandchildren turned 16 on Monday. So . . . 

. . . my daughter (their aunt) and I decided to make money cakes for their birthday. First I went to Michaels and loaded up on supplies.

Then we spent several hours rolling and pinning bills to styrofoam bases and decorating layers with flowers and a patriotic garland. 

 

We used 56 assorted $1, $5 and $10 bills for each cake and evenly divided them so they fit into pre-marked quarter sections of each layer. What a system, lol! 

A $50 bill (Grandpa's contribution) and a firecracker were at the top of each one.

 

And it didn't take long for the cakes to look like this!

__________
On another note . . . 

My daughter and I went for an early morning hike. 

It was a little chilly when we started out . . .

. . . but once we were at the top we warmed up with some hot tea :)

This Tall Meadow Rue was one of only a few wildflowers we saw on the trail. 

Have a great week!




__________
Copyright 2019, Barbara Schaffer 

Selvage String Update

The borders are on and the top is done! I'm linking up with Lori at Humble Quilts where you'll see lots more creative strings :)

I ended up making 4 corner blocks with some of the remaining selvage strips. This was such a fun project! 

More next month!




__________
Copyright 2019, Barbara Schaffer