To celebrate June, here are the inside cover pages from one of my favorite illustrators, George Carlson, who was a regular contributor to the magazine, creating over 50 of its covers and most of the puzzles and games.
New Blog Post Schedule
I’ve been writing this blog for 3 1/2 years, and I’ve decided it’s time to make a change. Starting today, I’m going to try out the following schedule (subject to change at the author’s whim): Monday: ongoing projects and other miscellaneous stuff Tuesday: vintage quilt patterns Wednesday: vintage fabrics Thursday: vintage embroidery transfers Friday: vintage…
Antique Album Quilt – Remade
It’s been wonderful to be able to hand quilt again. My carpal tunnel has improved after taking a 4 month quilting break and wearing a wrist brace to bed. I was so happy to get back to this project, and I’m looking forward to quilting more of the insane amount of tops I have waiting…
Emily’s Heart Doll Quilt Top
This is a miniature version of Emily’s Heart Quilt which I made for her as a bride quilt. For the blocks in this small quilt, I used similar dress prints from the 1930s – 1950s, and the smaller heart block from the border of Emily’s original quilt. I would have liked to add the heart…
Chintz Aprons with Appliqued & Embroidered Pockets
I enjoy making these aprons so much that I am continuing to sew them even though I’ve only sold a few. They are very nice to have on hand for gifts. I have used one for a hostess gift and Emily has taken taken a couple for bridal shower presents. For these two aprons, I…
Bloggers’ Quilt Festival – Charley Harper Water Drop Quilt
It’s time once again for the Bloggers’ Quilt Festival over at Amy’s Creative Side. Although it’s only been a few months since I posted my Charley Harper Water Drop Quilt, I am using it as my entry because it’s my current favorite of all the quilts I’ve made. The idea began when my husband gave…
Happy Mother’s Day!
The Headstart Book of Knowing & Naming, 1976 Kent Salisbury, Illustrator
Appliqued Baby Quilt – Vintage Novelty Toy Fabric
The quilt top is smaller than I originally planned. I decided to use each of the toy motifs only once, and then make two bead blocks. The blocks are 8″ with 2″ sashing and a 4″ outside border. Because I have so much of this novelty fabric, I might add this to my shop as…
Alice in Wonderland Redwork Quilt Blocks #5 and #6
This is the project I took on my long vacation immediately after my daughter’s wedding last year. This type of embroidery is so perfect for traveling; it’s even better than hand piecing because there are no little pieces to keep track of, and only one color of thread. The Alice blocks go very slowly (especially…
Appliqued Toy Quilt Blocks
A few years ago I saw a listing on ebay for some very unusual appliqued squares. Although the squares were listed as quilt blocks, I suspect they were originally a hand stitched child’s book. The edges were finished, and they had obviously been well-loved. The motifs were blanket stitched, but because the edges had not…
Appliqued Scottie Doll Quilt Top
This is Phase 2 of the doll quilt kit samples — one down, and two more to go. Years ago on ebay I saw a vintage scottie quilt with a similar diagonal set with the striped setting triangles, and I always wanted to try it. I think it turned out pretty cute. A couple of…
Three Doll Quilts in Progress
Here’s just a peek of three new doll quilts I’m working on — a feedsack dahlia, a scottie and a butterfly. The butterfly and dahlia blocks are traditional applique using the baste-pin-stitch method (although needle turn would also work). For the scottie quilt, I’m using a technique I developed for the Charley Harper Water Drop…
For the Industrious Needlewoman — Gifts for Baby
Looking through these early 20th Century newspapers is such fun. I especially love reading the directions written by Adelaide Byrd. These two patterns are definitely going in the queue for a future grandchild. It occurred to me that the cap probably needs to be printed in its original size. This is tricky because there are…
For the Industrious Needlewoman — Floral Centerpieces
Here are two pretty embroidery patterns which appeared in the Milwaukee Sentinel in 1914. Each week Adelaide Byrd presented a new full-sized embroidery pattern under the heading “For the Industrious Needlewoman,” accompanied by her suggestions for stitches, colors, and where the piece could be used. Apparently, in 1914 every woman knew how to make eyelets…
Crazy Doll Quilt Blocks
Because I wanted a break from cutting thousands of little kit quilt pieces, yesterday I decided to try some small crazy quilt blocks. In the past, I have used top stitching on my crazy blocks, because I enjoy making curved and odd shaped pieces. I do like the look of more weird shapes, but the…