WOW = Working On Wednesday

Today, and every day lately, I'm working on moving into our new home in Florida.   While lining my kitchen cupboards and drawers, the only measuring instrument I had resurrected from packages (beside my DH's pull out tape measure) was my large quilt ruler.  It worked great to measure the shelf liner.  But then I thought, why not get out the roller cutter too.  I was already using the mat to protect the counter top, and it was taking forever to draw a line and scissors cut it.  Wow!  It made quick work of it, and my measures and cuts were much more accurate too!  Just like cutting fabric, which I'm sooo familiar with doing.  The blade was getting dull anyway.

If you'd like to see what gals all over the world are working on today, link to Esther's WOW link here.

TAST

Pin Tangle is offering her Take A Stitch Tuesday again.  I just heard about it.  If you like hand embroidery, like I do, and you'd like to take it up a notch, like I would, this just might be for you. All levels of experience are welcome, beginners to advanced.  Get the details here.  TAST starts Jan. 3rd.  Will you be joining in?

Clarity here:  The work shown is NOT mine.  It is from the post Pin Tangle made about TAST.  She asked that we share the news about TAST.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Safe travels to those traveling, and to all, have a wonderful weekend with family and friends.

ORCA BAY

Did you know that Bonnie Hunter is starting a new Quiltville Mystery this week?  Part one of Orca Bay is now up.  You can link to it here.  This quilt will only be free on-line for a few months, as it will be published in Bonnie's next book.  She is posting the next steps every Friday.  You'll also find a link on my sidebar.

SCRAPPY DAY WORKING ON WEDNESDAY (WOW)

I'm cleaning up my sewing room today, and thinking about scraps.  It's amazing how that word means different things to different quilters.  I once took a class with a gal who was throwing out strips 4 and 5 inches wide by WOF.  I was shocked, and quickly grabbed them.  To me a throwaway is something pretty tiny!

This is what my trash looks like generally.  These are small waste baskets and the throwaways are very itty-bitty.

Anything too small to bother refolding goes into my scrap basket which lives right next to my sewing machine. These pieces are maybe 1" by 2" at the smallest -- anything I might make a crumb block with, or use to try out a stitch, etc.  -- anything that might be just perfect for an applique piece.  You never know.

I also keep my selvages.  I usually cut them 1.5".  Here's my basket of those.

And then there's my shoe box full of left over strips -- you know, those narrow strips left over from squaring up fabrics.  I use them as ribbons on gifts.  Or to tie FQs together for a gift.  They come in very handy.

I'm just curious, what to you consider too big to throw out -- too precious, because, after all, you paid the same price per square inch for the scraps as you did for the big fabric cuts?

I know applique enthusiasts save tinier pieces than most gals.  You just never know when what will be the perfect piece!

Maybe I should start a TV show on fabric scrap hoarders!  I bet I could find lots of sewing rooms to film my episodes!  In fact I know quite a few already, LOL!

Click on over to Esther's blog to see what gals all over the world are working on.

MORE SNOW PEOPLE

My last seven snow people are in the mail.  They remind me of Casper the Ghost dressed up as a snowman for some reason.  They just look so young and innocent.  It's funny how snow people can take on a life of their own.  They all are made using basically the same fabrics and pattern, but the free-form shapes, the embroidered noses with no pattern, the differences in their eyes (snaps and buttons), all work to make each unique.  These blocks are 12", so I should be able to put together a nice sized throw to snuggle under in the winter.  There are 13 of us in the swap total, an odd number to work with, but I'll come up with something fun, I'm sure.

BASKET QUILT

I've finished my baskets quilt top.  It will have to wait until winter to get quilted, but I'm very happy with how the top turned out.  Thanks to everyone who participated in this swap, I have such a lovely variety of baskets.

BLOCK LOTTO BLOCKS

November Block Lotto block is Scrappy Trips from Bonnie Hunter.  This is a super block for using up left over strips.  The end result when you put them together is wonderful.  These are my nine blocks for the month.

Completely on its own, this little koala came out fussy cut!  What a surprise.  That block is a keeper for sure!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Have fun with Halloween today!  This is my 'Every Witch Way' quilt, that I made a couple years ago.  The pattern was in Quiltmaker, Sept./Oct. 09.  I love the 'real' eye lashes.

WOW = Working On Wednesday

I've been busy selecting and executing a setting for six-inch basket swap blocks that arrived on Monday.  I received 6 straight baskets and 11 on point, so the first challenge was to find a setting to use them together and have everything facing the correct way.

First I put the straight-ons into the center of square-in-a-square blocks.  Then to bring the on-points up to size, I bordered them.  I also made an extra basket to fill in the setting.  I now have 9" finished size blocks.

The setting triangles include the inner border.  Here's a close up.

The blocks are laid out on a twin sized bed in these pics.  Hopefully they will be assembled into a flimsy by the end of the day.  Then to select an outer border, from stash if possible.

You can find out what gals around the world are WOW by hopping over to Esther's blog, here.

BLOOMS FOR DD

This week I finished the machine buttonhole stitch applique on this quilt for my daughter, as well as getting it all pieced.  I think due to the primitive look, I'll try my hand at big stitch quilting with pearle cotton.  I've used that once before on a smaller project and really liked it.  Watch for progress, as the goal is to have this quilt ready to hang when we leave for FL next month.

She has the perfect sized quilt hanger (made by her brother) waiting for it.

IT' SNOWING!

Well not literally, although it is cold and rainy today.  These are the first 5 snowpeople out of 12 total, for a Snowperson swap on DJ Alternate.  First I thought maybe I should enlarge their noses, but decided no, they are little pug noses, made from those baby carrots.  I think it adds to their personality and uniqueness.

AUTHOR'S ALBUM SWAP

Blocks have arrived from the Author's Album Swap.  These signed blocks will make a pretty quilt, but I don't think I'll get to them until next spring.

MILL GIRLS QUILT ALONG

The Mill Girls Quilt-along starts this week.  Our first assignment is to select fabrics.  Here they are. 

Next, we are to do all the cutting.  My table is cleared of other projects, and I'm ready to roll (roller cutter, that is).

Here's a link to this project.  Click on the button below (it's also on my left sidebar) to join the SBS And Other Elm Creek Quilts group, and quilt along with us.  The button is one Mill Girls block.

Do you love the Fat Quarter Shop?  I do!  They have the absolute best service on the web.  Melissa, of the Happy quilting blog, is having  a Fat Quarter Shop sponsored give-away.  Hop on over to her blog to see how you can win.

WOW = Working On Wednesday

What am I doing this week?

 Enjoying the unusually warm temperatures and the spectacular autumn color.  Here's the view down the road from our driveway.

 Up the road from our driveway.....................

 Along our wire line...............

 And pulling into our driveway.

Nature at its most awesome!  It's my favorite season for sure!

And to make this quilt related, I'm using autumn fabrics in my Mill Girls Quilt.  That Quilt Along (scroll down on the left sidebar for link) starts Friday.

FLIMSY COMPLETE!

 Yeah!  My quilt top is complete!  I've been working steadily on this quilt for several weeks now, as you know if you've been following along on my blog.  Now to get it quilted soon, "Good Lord willing and the creek don't rise."

The pattern was in McCall's Quilting, Jan/Feb 2011 issue.  It was all set up for a swap among seven.

We each gathered 46 unique Civil War fat quarters. 23 were cut into seven five-inch squares, one for each of us.  23 others were made into seven criss-cross blocks, one for each of us.

 There were very few duplicates. As far as I know, there are only two repeated fabrics in this entire quilt.

MAGIC FOR MOANA

As you know, I do not have a monetized blog.  I want my blog to be about sharing quilting, not advertising.  But I am sharing this one fundraising effort with you.

This is a blurred photo of Moana (whose name means 'ocean' in Hawaiian).  She went to school with my son, Eric, both in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, and at boarding school in 10th grade at Berkshire.  Eric went on to become an attorney, get married, have two little boys.  Moana's life took a different turn.  As she was riding her bicycle to work, she was hit from behind by a speeding driver, and her life was forever changed.  Her family is struggling to provide her with the best care, and to keep her at home with them.

I am asking family members who normally give me a Christmas present to please donate to this cause instead.

I can vouch that this is a good family and an upstanding cause.  I've placed a link on my side-bar if you would care to read about Moana.  If you are generous you may want to contribute.  I know even the smallest donations are appreciated.  This is in no way a scam.  Those of you who know me know that.  Thanks.

WE CAN DO IT!

This week we made foundation pieced string blocks for the Skill Builder Sampler.  I used my black/red/white selvages for my block.  You will find button with a link to this project on my left sidebar.

GIVE-AWAY

Look at the wonderful stuff Hilachas Blog is giving away for her blogiversary!  Hop on over for a chance to win.

PROGRESS

My Across the Spectrum Quilt is progressing nicely.  All the rows are together.  Borders are cut, and hopefully will go on later today.  It is spread out on my queen-sized guest bed in the photo.  I really prefer the scrappy/random placement of the blocks over the rainbow layout shown in the pattern for this quilt.

ON THE MOVE

 I've moved my sewing downstairs to our dining table for the duration of this project.  It gives me a much larger work space, plus the guest bed with rows all spread out in order is closer too.

I miss my loft, but I still have a great view with windows surrounding three sides of this area.

WOW = Working On Wednesday

It's another Wednesday and I'm working on my Across the Spectrum quilt.  This is the third Wed. in a row that I've posted about this quilt.  Amazing focus for me!  All the blocks are here now and I have all the rows sewn and am working on sewing them together.  Here are all the rows.  The ones in the background are stacked a bit so I could fit this on my queen-sized guest bed.  It's the largest design surface I have, other than the floor, and with two dogs there's not chance of it staying the way I have it laid out on the floor.

Today I'm washing my backing and border fabrics.  The goal is to stick with this one quilt, start to finish.  I don't think I have ever done that.  Focus, focus.  I'm hoping I can get the quilt rolled tight enough to machine stitch it on my DSM with my walking foot.

If not I'll either big stitch hand quilt it with perle cotton or tie it.  Be still purists!  I love tied quilts.  They have such a primitive look.  And I don't send my quilts out to a longarmer.  Their work is lovely, but I want the quilts I make to be completely made by me.  And my friends. Now if I owned a longarm, I'd use it for sure.  I just don't want someone else to do it.  Just my little quirk.

If you'd like to visit lots of WOW posts pop on over to Esther's blog where she hostesses this weekly event.

WHAT'S IN A NAME?

As Sweet as Cinnamon has been wondering about how our blogs got their names.

Mine is pretty simple.  I like alliteration, where successive words start with the same letter (like Peter Piper Picked a Peck of Pickled Peppers).  My name is Pat, so Pat's what?  Patter means chatter.  My blog is where I chatter about my quilting and occasionally other things pop in too.  So the name of my blog is Pat's Patter.

But the link is PatsPattering.blogspot.  Why?  PatsPatter was already taken and pattering is just another form of the same word.

If you'd like to join in this fun, post about your blog's name, and link it with Dawn at As Sweet as Cinnamon for a chance to win a drawing.

I DID IT! UPDATE!

I do think it's working now.  I hope so.  Please let me know again if you are able to copy my link for my blog button, paste it in as a gadget on your blog as a gadget HTML/Java Script, and have it work.  It should show as my button and when you or any of your guests click on it, it should take them to my blog.  Fingers crossed!

Again, many thanks to Blogging With Amy for her precise directions, and to Photo Bucket for free hosting my blog button picture.  Whew!  What a long day!  I did get three rows of my Across the Spectrum quilt sewn together today also.

PS:  Don't ask me how to add a blog button.  Go to the link to Amy!  I can't help you! 

Must be wine time!