Memorial Day

I'm a sentimental fool when it comes to patriotism. I get choked up when they play The Star Spangled Banner, especially at little kids' sporting events. I could watch The West Wing reruns daily.* I have more Americana themed quilts than Christmas quilts - probably more than all of my holiday quilts combined. And I still have more red white and blue fabric in my stash.

 

Two of my favorite post-9/11 fabrics.

So when I saw this viral craft project on Facebook, I had to try it. I cleaned out all of the white bandanas at my local JoAnn's. They were already sold out of all of the red and blues, thanks to a post on their Facebook page and a 10 for $10 sale. Then I went to Dollar Tree after hearing a rumor that they had a red and blue bandana in a set for $1 each, but they only had a few blue ones left.

Finally I dug into my stash to fill in the gaps. It's a little bit addictive, so I made four of them: two matching ones for my mother's double doors, one with the more muslin/repro feel, and one for me. I love how they turned out, probably even more than if I had been able to find all of the bandanas, because of some of the fabrics I was able to mix in. Like this one:

and this one:

But no matter how much I enjoy a three day weekend or a Twilter sew in (#MDSI) or a good barbecue, let's remember what this day is really about.



To all the families and friends of our service men and women who gave their lives, my prayers are with you.

I hope everyone has a safe and relaxing weekend!

*If you are a West Wing fan, you MUST listen to the new-ish podcast The West Wing Weekly! It is a great look back with lots of insider stories and some fantastic guest appearances!

WIP Wednesday - More One Hour Baskets

It's graduation time, and for once I am on top of the gift situation - maybe because none of my children are involved!

This year, all but one of the graduates we know are girls. The boy will just get a card and a check, but I wanted to do something a little more fun for the ladies. I decided to make them each a One Hour Basket, which is a free pattern on Craftsy.

There was a perfectly timed sale on home dec weight fabrics at JoAnn's (50% off!), so I didn't spend a lot and have some leftovers.  These baskets really do take just about an hour. I spent a little more time since I did some light quilting on the exterior of the basket, but I found I could make one basket in about one and a half episodes of The Good Wife on Hulu.

I stuffed each basket with a some goodies: a small first aid kit, some Scotch Removable Mounting Squares, and a few treats.

I've got two down and one to go. Shoutout to The University of Alabama at Birmingham for having a color guide on their website!

P.S. I just visited Kelby's blog and found that there is a new pattern called Friends of the One Hour Basket. I am in love! I have just found the perfect use for the leftovers!

Going to Guild - Becky Goldsmith

Monday, May 2 was guild night, and our speaker was Becky Goldsmith of Piece O' Cake. She came into town and taught an applique class based on this quilt, Welcome to the North Pole.

Her program was largely about using color, which she uses in surprising ways in her quilts. This quilt is called "Tile Tango," and is from the book The Quilter's Practical Guide to Color. Do you notice the block in the lower right corner?

This quilt is called "Button Box," and it's from the book Piecing the Piece O' Cake Way. I love this quilt but am not a fan of curved piecing. I would need a really good reason to make this quilt! But isn't it so cute?

Becky also introduced us to Adobe Capture, and app that allows you to pull design details from photographs. I'll be playing with this more and doing a review once I get to know it better. Do you use it?

Happy Mother's Day!

Longer post later, but both my boys arrived home from college Friday afternoon, so I am enjoying the best Mother's Day gift ever - all five of us under one roof again.

Hope all the mamas out there have a great day!

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