DrEAMi! #50

Wow! Fifty posts about the squirrels we love to chase. Here's a terrific video of an industrious little gal chasing who knows what, or simply having a blast (sound familiar?!) Just click on the photo to watch it. It's only 11 seconds, so I'll wait here...

The very first DrEAMi linky was January 28, 2017. This cushion cover, my own design, was my Drop Everything And Make it project. If you want to go back and read that post just click the photo. Wow! I had 18 linkups!

Project Quilting 12.2 Fussy Cutting

The challenge this time was to incorporate fussy cutting into our project. I did two projects again, two of each, though due to real life happenings, one of the four items is still as you will see, in the blocks stage.

Still, I do have three finished items.

One of my quarter of the year goals has been to make two cat mats which I donate to either the Windsor Humane Society or to Kittenaide. Cats photographed sitting on something cute or homemade like a little cat-sized quilt, tend to get adopted faster. And what cat doesn't love a snuggly place to curl up?

Bella already tried them out, as some of you may have seen on Instagram.

Cat Mats Installment #3 of 3

Finally I am publishing a long overdue post. You may recall I participated in Cheryl of Meadow Mist Designs, and Paige of Quilted Blooms, first book release, Modern Plus Sign Quilts back in 2018. I chose to make Kaleidoscope Plus (you know my love affair with kaleidoscopes runs deep).

Oh how I love that quilt! Fabrics, front (so many cat-themed ones) and back (a soft grey textured Minky), quilting, the design, just ahhh. I named it Cat-Eye-doscope and it went to my dear friend of many years, Linda.

Well I had leftover fabric and I knew I needed to make Linda's cat daughters their own quilts, seeing as how much cats love quilts... I showed the finished mats in this post, and I alluded to needing to tell more of the story behind giving Linda her quilt and her cats their mats.

Cat Mats Installment 2 of 3, Centred Winners and a Coupon Code!

Another item on my Q2FAL list is to make a (ahem) rather long overdue cat mat for Harper, my grand-cat. I am happy to report it is now done.

This fabric was given to me a few years ago, so it's high time to get it off the shelf and into use. It was a panel, Cat-I-Tude by Ann Lauer for Benartex. I debated on putting two of the cats on the front but it would have been rather large then, so I decided to have a reversible mat, and use one cat on the front and one on the back. Harper is a girl, and Dayna likes pink, so pink is the 'right' side. I simply added some pink strips to the sides and purple strips, left over from Dayna's graduation from university quilt, Shoot for the Moon, to the top and bottom to make a rectangle approximately 13" x 19".

Cat Mats Installment 1 of 3

So that will get people coming back for more right?!
One of the year goals is making at least two cat mats for either the Windsor Humane Society or the Leamington Kittenaide Program per quarter. I am happy to report that my two are done for this quarter, and it's another item checked off my Q2 list!

I like to call these 'A Cushy for a Tushy' and I think two cat bums will love to curl up on these as they wait for their forever homes.

TGIFF and Project Quilting 11.2 Team Colours

Welcome to TGIFF! I'm excited to once again host TGIFF, one of my two turns this year. If you'd like to host, please check out the TGIFF page here.

And welcome to my second Project Quilting challenge finish as well! I am very excited to have finally joined in with PQ this year, as I've watched from the sidelines, and wished I had the time to join in for the past three or so years now. This year, I just did it. Threw caution to the winds as they say. So far I'm 2 for 2!

More Cat Mats and a Wee Tutorial

One of my Q2FAL goals was to make two more cat mats, and on the last weekend in June, I completed the goal. My Q2 list is here.

These will go to the Leamington Kittenaide Program which is an organization of foster homes for cats and kittens in Essex County.

Cat Mats Finish

This was one of my Q2FAL goals, to make four cat mats. My list is here. I'm happy to report that as of this week, I have completed that goal.

Here are two of them, modelled by the ever-cooperative Bella:

Seriously, she just loves to pose for the camera! She actually was a huge factor in the design process of these first two...

A Bit of Everything

I was dark almost all weekend, meaning I stayed off-line. Didn't read blogs, didn't post on Instagram, except for my yoga challenge and one quilt photo, didn't even look at gmail. So my apologies if you're wondering why I haven't read your TBT post or responded to a comment. However, I was pretty productive, despite not sewing at all on Saturday because of IRL commitments.

The first item on the catch-up list is the Fireburst mystery that Tish of Tish N Wonderland is hosting. This is my fabric pull...

RSC and OMG and Share the Love

This has been a post-heavy week...because it's been an activity and event-heavy week! This is my second post in one day; well, I actually wrote the 30 Quilt Designs Challenge post yesterday. Still.

Okay, as they say, let's get down to brass tacks...

1.  RSC - aka Rainbow Scrap Challenge 
The colour for this month is purple. I did not bring any scraps with me other than a little bit of blue, whites and creams, and my drawer of 2.5" squares. You can see that the purple section is pretty small.

I could have made a second block, barely, but it would be mostly deep purple as is the one I did make. I know I have my little bit larger but not as large as a fat quarter baggie of purples, with lots more light ones, so I will make my second block once I am back home. Here is the first purple one. I love it!

Here are my first three blocks on the design wall. You can also see the start of my niece's quilt, which I've been doing as a leader/ender for now.

So bright and cheery, much like she is! It has been removed though because I have a quilt ahead of it... more on that in a second. But first, making the RSC blocks means that I have had to make several of the HSTs using just my 2.5" squares. How does one get a 2.5" HST from two 2.5" squares? Easy! Draw a line on the diagonal right through the centre of the 2.5" square with a marking tool (I like my Hera marker) and sew ON that line. Trim 1/4" seam and you are left with one 2.5" HST (ya!) and a pair of small triangles. They are not small enough to become cat mat stuffing, so I've been sewing them back together.

Pretty tiny!

Each measures 1.75". We'll see what they grow up into...pincushions, mug rug, mini, doll quilt... more on that in a bit.

2.  OMG and Update on January's Fail... now a Success!
The design wall has been cleared to make room for my aunt's quilt. Her 80th birthday was last April, so I have to get it to her by this coming April! My goal is to get the top together this month.

I took a picture of it on my design wall at home, and carefully stacked the blocks in order as I took it off. Yesterday I put them back up with the photo's help, in the order they'd been on my Kingsville design wall! Love an idea I get that works out perfectly. Here they are as of today:

Dutch Garden quilt kit on Craftsy (affiliate link) - Note that the kit I bought is no longer available, and besides, I'm not doing the pattern in that kit anyhow LOL! It's the lowest price I've seen it btw...

I failed again, miserably so, in my OMG for January. It was not a big goal either. I got one of the two kitty mats done. Two days after the deadline, so yesterday, Feb. 2, I had the second one done. I loved making it! It's a block out of the book, Stash Lab by Tonya Alexander, that I made rectangular (12X18") for the mat size.

I kept the quilting very simple, stuffing one half with fabric and thread and batting bits, quilting down the middle, and then stuffing the other half. I was going to do grid quilting on that more open half, as in Christina Cameli's Quilting the Grid Craftsy class (affiliate link), which I bought about a month ago and have yet to finish and review for you, and let me tell you it is way cool. Let me also tell you that Craftsy has started a new way to gaining access to their hundreds of classes: Craftsy Unlimited. You pay a monthly fee, much like Netflix, and then watch to your heart's delight. They have a 7-day free trial on right now, in case you weren't aware of it...a good way to determine if this might be the thing for you. I love my Craftsy classes, and go back to them time and again.  I emailed them yesterday because my Craftsy button on my sidebar has not been updated since Christmas, very odd. I put a new one there myself. However, I found out that big changes have occurred and are occurring with them, so stay tuned for more developments there. They have a new collection, their biggest yet, Boundless Collage (gorgeous) and, just because you might need to know: one I own a fair amount of, Boundless Blenders, is on sale at a screaming great price, CA$5.19/yard.  That's an affiliate link to it. In case you wanted to just check😉😈 that info is correct...Anyhow. Where was I?!!
Cat mats!

Both in light blue for the RSC colour of the month! Top one has more quilting, a little hard on the sewing machine to go through lots of bunched up fabric and batting bits.

There they both are. Nice and plump for nestling down upon. So my goal was met, just 2 days late. No worries; the cats won't mind. My favourite piece in the one strip is this butterfly, a part of a Laurel Burch kitties fabric scrap from a dear friend. Both have lions on blue flannelette on the back so they are actually reversible.

These are going to go to either the Englewood or the Bradenton Humane Society for cats to sit upon in their crates as they await adoption. Bradenton has an entire building with a couple of rooms, one a playroom, just for cats. A cat is more likely to be adopted when sitting upon a cute homemade mat apparently. And I like making them for these sweet souls. These two are given in memory of one particular sweet soul, my friend Lorraine's cat, CoCo, who passed away a few months ago. Lorraine always included a cute picture of CoCo adorned in a Christmas outfit, with her Christmas cards, and I missed that this year.

CoCo in 2015

3.  Share the Love
Sweet souls. Small quilts. Warning: I am going to throw you a squirrel and cause you to have a DREAMi! (Drop Everything And Make it!)

Speaking of sidebar buttons, there is another new one on mine. Clicking it will take you to Bernie's post on her blog, Needle & Foot, that will explain everything you need to know about her project that runs this month. I know I am definitely having a DrEAMi!/DREAMi! (doesn't matter how you write the acronym, I'm having one) this month, despite some looming deadlines coming my way. You may have seen doll quilts popping up on Instagram, and in QBL. They are being given with the adorable dolls that Amy of www.adolllikeme.com makes. Please go and read all about Bernie's project, to include a quilt for each doll that Amy makes for these special kids who are SO affected when they receive a doll who looks just like them, whether that means missing a limb, having a large birthmark, or having burn scars, etc...visit Amy's site and watch a video, and you will be profoundly affected. As I said to Bernie, there is much need for comfort in our world, and every little bit counts, and every little bit matters. I hope you will spread the word, and I hope you will make a doll quilt or two and send it to Amy to be included with one of her incredible dolls. All details are on Bernie's post.

I am linking up this lengthy post with Angela at soscrappy for RSC!

I have also signed up for Patty's Postcard swap at Elm Street Quilts! Click that link to find out all the details. It will be fun! I am also linking this post with her OMG for February.

Come back tomorrow for Sunday Stretch which is also late 😬 because of this crazy week I've had! Monday (or maybe Tuesday LOL) I plan to let you know some more exciting details about my Postcard from Sweden QAL, and another Quilt Along, which may be the start of the annual QAL here at mmm! quilts as it's the second one...another shadow quilt!

Oh! I had to remove a few third and fourth comments (only 2 per person) but after that I did the draw Saturday morning as I said I would for the Wonderlust fabric bundle. The first number the random generator spit out was...

Yay Janine! She has been contacted and I'll just say that it was a great pick-me-up for her for personal reasons so that makes me even more happy. Thanks to everyone who left such wonderful appreciative comments. The cushion sits on a chair in our living room and so I see it multiple times a day, and it lights me up inside each time. If you haven't read the post, click here to take a look at Paula Nadelstern's gorgeous fabrics, and find the links to other posts using this fabric.

Funny photo if you've made it this far:

Bella was actually reclining partially on her cat own mat, and I gently placed the just-made one on top of her to see what she'd do...she didn't move a muscle! Must've loved that soft fuzzy flannelette...that or seen another photo op knowing her! Look at her twinkle toes!

Kitty Mat Tutorial #2

I've completed almost half of my January OMG, to make two cat mats for the Humane Society. Here is a tutorial for this fun and quick make.  This is what we are making, in the RSC2018 colour of the month, pale blue. It measures about 18" wide by 12" high. You could use this same pattern to make placemats.

1. Choose your fabrics.  Cut:

• For the large squares, cut 12 squares @ 3.5"
• for the 4-patches, cut two strips @ 2" wide of two different fabrics for a total of 4 strips. You will have extra. You actually only need one WOF strip and another about 10-12" long from each of the two fabrics, if working with scraps.

2. Piecing 4-patches

• Sew two strips of the 2" contrasting fabrics together along the long edge of the strip.
• Press to the darker fabric. This will help 'nest' the seams (making a nice match at the centre).
• Repeat with the second two strips.
• Cut 24 @ 2" wide segments from these strips.
• Pair these, nesting the seams at the centre of each 4-patch, to make 12 4-patch blocks. They should measure 3.5" square.

3. Layout

• Arrange in alternating fashion to make a 6 X 4 block rectangle as shown below.

Double-check (clearly I didn't; see the error?!) your design.

4. Piece the rectangle.

• Visualize these 6 columns as 3 sets of 2.  Pair the blocks in the first column and chain sew them together.
• Repeat with the middle set, and finally with the third set.

I piece the majority of my quilts this way, in columns, a method I call "Book it!" which is in more detail here. I learned it many years ago in a colourwash class, where it was invaluable in keeping a few hundred 2" squares in exact order as you'd arranged on your design wall!

• Press in alternating directions. I've turned the columns sideways to fit on my small pressing board. Putting the 3.5" squares on top, alternating down the column, as you see in the bottom of the picture, ensures the pairs get pressed to those 3.5" squares. The alternating pressing scheme again will help nest all your seams.

• Sew the top pair to the pair below it, and so on down the column until you have the entire column (a 2 block by 4 block column) pieced. Repeat with the other two columns.
• Press columns 1 and 3 seams down, and column 2 seams up.

Nope, still hadn't noticed the error....

Sew all three columns together, and press! And THAT was when I noticed... Sigh. But as you see from the top photo, I unpicked and fixed it. Can't have a kitty bum on a mat with an error!  I have to quilt it up yet, but I'll show you when I have the other one all done, which needs to happen by January 31.

Bella tried it out for size, with some coaxing...😼 any other time she's all over something I'm trying to photograph!

I have been told that cats tend to get adopted out more quickly if they have a homey mat to sit on in their crate while they wait for their forever home. These two mats will most likely go to the Englewood Humane Society in Florida since I will be there in less than a week! 😎

All right, lots to do before we leave, in the sewing loft that is. Ha! Priorities. Not much else to worry about, all quick and easy.

• Job one is Wayward Transparency; it is done but for the binding.
• Job two is planning and drafting and test piecing for another Benartex blog hop at the end of the month. This fabric--!! Just wait until you see it, well, what the heck, here's a sneak peek of the fabrics now that they have arrived since I did my Q1FAL list:

DROOLING

• Job three is writing up a finish post for another quilt coming out in Benartex's Modern By the Yard magazine which goes live on Friday. EEEP!

Lots of stuff going on!

Update:

Purr-fect backing, pale blue for January's RSC colour, and the big cats: lions!  Pillow turn method, bits of fabric and thread and batting I used to throw away for stuffing...

Ta-da! Poofy kitty mat #1 done and Bella-tested

I just quilt, slowly, because it's very thick, two lines, so the mat is divided into three sections. Then one more lengthwise down the centre. More detail when I get the other one done.

Linking up
Sew Fresh Quilts
soscrappy

UFO work and Another Exciting Announcement

UFOs

I didn't think I'd be able to link up with Tish's party this week, because I didn't think I was working on any UFOs, and then I realized one of my UFOs was not on the list from this post.  (I've gone back and added it, not to worry.) My cat mats. Each year I make two, giving them to the Englewood FL Humane Society where we get our dogs' heartworm tests. I always intend to make two more at home for the Windsor Humane Society or for a cat rescue I've heard of right near me in Leamington. I haven't. So this time it is my OMG as you read on my last post. I did a quick look and had a quick think and easily found the four possibilities I showed you in the OMG post. Because the paler blues are the RSC2018 colour of the month, I decided my first cat mat would be in those colours. I made it like the second one for which I never did write a tutorial, so watch this space, as they say, because I'm taking photos along the way and I'll show you how I did it, pretty easy-peasy. These mats are about the size of a placemat, so you can always use it for those too. 😉

A little progress; man I do love these blues! That's the last of the arrows print; I feel glad and sad, do you know what I mean?!

Any progress is good progress, right? The Splash of Colour was also on the UFO list, the "B" (Blocks) list, and is due shortly to link up for prizes. I missed the deadline and link-up for the flimsy, so I'll be damned if I miss the final link-up. I've decided to call this "Float", and it is half way done quilting. I'm doing an all-over hook & swirl design of Angela's.

It's back!

Speaking of fun linky parties, which provide another opportunity to meet other quilty peeps, several of us have missed Throwback Thursdays which were held with Jen at A Quarter Inch From the Edge. Well, I emailed Jen last week and offered to babysit this linky for her while she is buried in full-time teaching and raising two littles (been there, done that, no time to sew except for school breaks). She assured me she is still getting in some sewing and quilting time, but blogging ain't gonna happen.

So, the first Thursday of the month Throwback Thursday is going to be held here until further notice. What is Throwback Thursday for those of you who may not know? It is a chance to pull out and photograph those older quilts, probably pre-blogging, and tell us their story.  Every quilt has a story (isn't there a song about that... ah Rod, you know that's what you meant).

Since we missed the first Thursday of January, the party is going to happen this coming Thursday, January 11. I will be telling you about the quilt below that always sits on my bed for the month of December and into the beginning of January. Sneak peek:

I'm making a page for Throwback Thursday, so you can find my previous posts; it's also a way for me to remember which oldies have been documented.😃 I have also put a little description there for those who might happen to be randomly cruising around my blog...

Linking up
Tish's Adventures in Wonderland
Cooking Up Quilts

Knitty Kitty Mats

This is my OMG goal for March: a cat mat aka cat pouffé for Bella, and two mats for cat kennels that I'm donating this year to the kitties who are waiting for their forever homes in Animal Welfare League, a no kill shelter.  Update: I've just dropped them off this am at the Suncoast Humane Society, which is where I took those I made last year.  We took the dogs there to get their heartworm tests, so I thought it fitting to give them a little extra thanks.  I've taken all the photos and written up some of the directions for the tutorial for both designs too, so pop back soon. Pretty easy peasy.

You may remember that I forgot Miss Bella's cat "pouffé" at home in Kingsville.   You may recall that I found some perfect cat fabric, "Knitty Kitty" at the Port Charlotte Quilt Show.  Bella put her fuzzy butt stamp of approval on it.