Happy Holidays!

Welcome to Treadlestitches!

I hope your holidays were happy and healthy.  Ours were wonderful, and busy, which is why I skipped blogging last week.  Our four youngest grand kids were here for the annual cookie baking and decorating.  Decorating is their favorite part, can you tell? From left to right we have Little Guy, Mr. H., Buddy, and Miss E.

Here are some of their creations.  They do get a little heavy handed with the sprinkles!

Our littlest boys were in a Christmas program at their school, which was absolutely adorable as you can guess.  Little Guy is in the front row, on the far left.  I missed my chance to photograph Buddy's class :(

We had a lovely family party at our house on Christmas Eve, and all the shopping, wrapping, baking, cooking, decorating etc. were so worth it.

We got everything cleaned up/put away, rested a bit, and then I finally had time for quilting!

I finished these two baby quilts yesterday evening.  We are having some welcome sunshine today, as you can see.

First is a Trip Around the World, made with pastel baby-friendly fabrics I had on hand.  It's one of my favorite go-to easy patterns.

Lots of ducky prints in this one!

The back is at least as cute as the front!  I just love that sweet chubby frog.

I showed the top of this quilt last time, before I added the final border.

Since the border was so light, I added a darker binding to set off the edge.

Both these quilts are square.  The Trip Around the World is 40.5 in. x 40.5 in. and the Charm quilt is 42 in. x 42 in. with the outer border.  They will both be donated to the local Community Baby Shower in January.

On Thursday we went antiquing, something we often do between Christmas and New Years.  I got this pile of loot:  a hard cover quilt notebook, some Sesame Street characters for the grand kids to use with play dough, and fabric.  I can always use Green Bay Packers fabric, especially in quilts for older kids, and I never have enough light prints.

My favorite fabric buy was nearly 2 yards of this Snoopy print.  It's meant for Easter, but is still cute.

This cup made me laugh!  I'm guessing the cup maker meant to imply that someone tried to be good for Santa, and didn't quite make it.  I took it a different way.

It made me think of how hard we all try to make holidays "perfect" (whatever that is) and how perfection always eludes us.  Thank goodness we can be happy without everything being absolutely perfect.

I was definitely thinking of this on Dec. 23, when our refrigerator suddenly quit working and couldn't be repaired.  Ack!  Thank goodness most of the food for the Christmas party was in the downstairs freezer.  We found a fridge in stock at a local store, but it couldn't be delivered until the day after Christmas.  We improvised in the meantime with help from our kids, and it all worked out.

Mrs. Pfaff and I have our work cut out for us this week, making more quilts for the Community Baby Shower.  I will do my best, but I know it won't be perfect, because I'm not perfect, and that's okay.  The quilts will be warm and cozy for the little ones, and that's what matters.

Have a lovely week, and Happy New Year!

Thanks for reading,

Sylvia@Treadlestitches

Linking up with:

Alycia at Finished or Not Finished Friday

Angela at So Scrappy

 

 

Dancing the Two Step

 Welcome to Treadlestitches!  Thanks for visiting!

This week I finished a little Two Step quilt.  The free pattern is from Missouri Star.  (Click HERE for the video.)

The pattern title made me think of my Dad, teaching me to two step when I was a young teenager.  He was a good dancer.  It was fun to watch him polka with my mom, both of them laughing.

The blocks are simple, just one charm square (the one with wild dots), two short rectangles 2.5 in. x 5 in., and two long rectangles 2.5 in. x 9 in.  The blocks finish at 8.5 in. square.

Cutting was fast and easy.  I have a box of 2.5 x 5 in. rectangles, and I pulled from that for the short ones.  I cut the longer rectangles as I was processing scraps, and filled in from the 2.5 in. strips.  That left only the charm squares to cut.  I didn't repeat any of the fabrics in the blocks, except for the wild dots of course.  The border is a Toy Story print, left over from another quilt.

The hard part was setting the blocks together!  Jenny kind of hurries that part at the end of the video, and I really didn't get what she was talking about.  I had to play with the blocks for a long time to figure out how best to set them.  Not sure if I got that right yet, but moving on!

The back is more of the subtle butterfly print on white, and I bound it with a solid aqua.  I'm enjoying using solid colors for binding, especially with these wild colored quilts.
 

To make the back wide enough, I added this strip of frog print down the middle.  I got this scrap at a yard sale last summer, and it's just too pretty to cut into small pieces.  (Skies are gloomy here today, it's hard to get the right light for photos, sorry.  The background really is white, I promise.)

It's nice to find a good use for this fabric.  The quilt will be donated to a children's charity.

This week I started working on some baby quilts.  How is that any different than any other week, you may ask.  Most of my quilts are definitely baby-sized, but are intended more for toddlers, who enjoy looking at all the fun animals etc. in the prints.   These new quilts are meant for actual babies.  Here in the Milwaukee area, local TV station anchor Susan Kim and Waterstone Bank are again hosting a Community Baby Shower in January.  (Click HERE for information.)  Last year was the first year I contributed anything.  This year I wanted to start earlier.

This little top was one of those DrEAMI quilts--Drop Everything And Make It!  I had a pack of charm squares I bought when visiting a quilt shop with a friend (hi, Debbie!) and I added in some stash squares.

These elephants are so sweet!  

I've seen pictures of quilts like this online for years, usually with plain white strips in between the squares, but I wanted to use the footprint print.  I don't have the quilt pattern, I just figured it out (And did the math!  And it actually worked!).  If anybody knows the original designer, I'd be happy to give them credit.

It's 36 in. square without a border.  I'm trying to decide if I should add a border or just finish it as it is.  Back in the day it would have been a good candidate for Jack's Basket, but they don't accept quilts this size anymore. 

Something weird has been happening.  Every morning, Hubby and I find one of these red candles out of its holder.  We figure it must be Snicky the cat, but there are no teeth or claw marks on the candle.  Just a curious case of the cat in the night.

No photos of the little boys this week, sorry.  Little Guy has had a bad cold, and been home from preschool all week.  He's feeling better aside from a cough.  We're trying to get him healthy for Christmas.
 

Speaking of the Holidays, Christmas stress is real!  We're shopping and hiding presents and hoping we haven't forgotten anything.  I bought some new wrapping paper the other day, and it was hard to choose from all the cute ones.  I wish they made these in fabric!

Have a good week, whatever you're up to!  Happy Holidays to all who celebrate, and happy quilting to everyone!

Thanks for reading,

Sylvia@Treadlestitches

Linking up with:

Sarah at Can I Get A Whoop Whoop

Alycia at Finished or Not Finished Friday

Angela at So Scrappy

Cynthia at Oh Scrap

 

 

 

I Spy A Little Quilt, and Going Bananas

 Welcome to Treadlestitches!

 I spy a little I Spy quilt hanging on the clothesline!  

It's made of 5 in. (cut) squares.  I was inspired by this quilt top (below) that I finished for the quilt guild a few weeks ago:

The top was donated by a very generous quilter, who made a nice big stack of tops during the pandemic lockdown.  For this one she used novelty prints (my favorite!), alternating between light and dark.  People, I tried to do the same for my quilt, but the randomness of it drove me nuts.  I loved the look of the original quilt, but I just cannot do random! So I picked an alternate fabric from the stash and calmed it down a little.

Do you make kits for yourself?  I often do, especially when I'm cutting up scraps.  I can get excited about an idea for a quilt, get it ready, and then work on it when other projects are done.  That's what I did with this little one.  

As I was putting it together, I started noticing that most of the prints featured animals:  dinosaurs, cows, bugs, birds, plus fictional animals like Scooby-Doo and Daniel Tiger, and even a tiny bit of Bucky Badger.  Then I remembered that I did this on purpose when I made the kit!  (This is why I'm writing this stuff down now!)

Before I remembered my plan, I replaced one of the animal squares with this banana one.  Oops!  So it's all animals, plus one banana square.  Even the border is a grasshopper print.

The backing is butterflies on white.  The new poly batting is working out great, and will make the quilt warm and snuggly for the recipient.  (Thanks again, Joey!)

I had bananas on my mind last night when I was choosing a border for another Bricks quilt, so this happened.  I bought this bananas-on-denim print at a flea market, and now I'm down to only a yard left.  I'll show the whole quilt when it's done.

Update on the GSAFE auction:  The original goal was to raise $30,000.  The actual total was $37,337!  My three quilts brought in over $600.  I am over the moon!  I was just hoping they would get even one bid.  The money will be used to help LGBTQ kids in schools.   (Click HERE for their web site.)

We're getting our Christmas decorations out a little at a time.  Buddy and Little Guy helped put tiny ornaments on this tree and regular ornaments on the big tree.  They are handy to have around.

Who says kids need expensive toys?  Little Guy's favorites this week are actual rocks!  We gathered these at the lake several months ago.  They're great for loading into train cars or dump trucks.  I wonder if he'll have as much fun with his Christmas presents?

I hope you're having a wonderful week.  Happy Hanukah to all who celebrate!

Thanks for reading,

Sylvia@Treadlestitches

Linking up with these wonderful quilters:

Alycia at Finished or Not Finished Friday

Angela at So Scrappy

Sarah at Can I Get A Whoop Whoop

Cynthia at Oh Scrap

Passing on the Comfort

Welcome to Treadlestitches!

It's a hazy shade of winter outside this morning, so indoor photos will have to do.  Here's my latest Rainbow Scrap Quilt finish, the first of the Uneven Nine Patch baby-sized quilts. 

Snicklefritz the cat is really getting the hang of posing on a quilt.  I think he likes this one.  Maybe because another name for this pattern is Puss in the Corner?

Here's a closeup.  The blocks alternate between light centers (like the Sneetches) and dark centers (like the stars and comets).  Each block is made from two light charm squares and two dark charm squares.  (Click HERE for some quick instructions.)  Of course there had to be a Green Bay Packers block!

This red block is my favorite: hands, and hearts, and love.

I'm sure you can't see from this photo, but the white fabric has a subtle butterfly print.  I bought several yards of this print for a different quilt, but changed my mind.  A strip of the blue butterfly print from the border makes the back wide enough.
 

Sometimes I wonder what happens to the quilts I donate.  I always hope they'll be loved and used, but you never know.   Just as I was thinking this, my friend Debbie C. sent me this photo.

It's a detail of a quilt found in Germany.  The tag on the back identifies it as being made by the Canadian Red Cross.  Hundreds (thousands?) of quilts were made in North America and shipped to Europe as World War II was ending, to help refugees and people recovering from the war.

This is the back, and the hand stitched label.

Here's what it looks like close up.  Great pattern, right?  And hand quilted.

The quilt was published in the Suture and Selvedge blog, which focuses on textiles and women's lives.  (Click HERE for the article). 

That started me thinking about a book I had read about similar quilts found in Europe, so I hunted it down on my quilt bookshelves.  It's called Passing on the Comfort:  The War, The Quilts, and the Women Who Made a Difference.  The authors are An Keuning-Tichelaar and Lynn Kaplanian-Buller.

Once I found it, I realized I had only skimmed it before, looked at the quilts, and moved on.  I am very disappointed in myself for doing that!  This week, I actually read it, and was very moved by An's narrative of living through the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands.  As a nurse and a Mennonite pastor's wife, she took in people fleeing and/or hiding, including Jewish children and adults, and did very dangerous jobs for the Resistance.

The quilts in the book were made mostly in the U.S. and Canada, and shipped out through the Mennonite Central Committee.  Lynn Kaplanian came along in the 1980s, saw the remaining quilts in a house she stayed in, and arranged for them to be exhibited.  She encouraged An to write down her memories.  

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in World War II history.

In other news, the GSAFE Quilt and Fiber Art Auction to benefit LGBT youth finishes on this Monday, Dec. 4.  I donated three of my quilts, including the crayon quilt above (but not my dog!).  Originally I had planned to give these quilts to other places, but I am finding that they are doing okay in the auction, even though they are miles away from perfect.  It makes me wonder.  Will I do more good by auctioning/selling quilts than by donating them directly?  Maybe I should set aside a few "special" quilts for these occasions? Something to think about.

Have a wonderful week, and happy quilting!

Thanks for reading,

Sylvia@Treadlestitches

Linking up with:

Alycia at Finished or Not Finished Friday

Sarah at Can I Get A Whoop Whoop

Angela at So Scrappy

Cynthia at Oh Scrap

 

Rainbow Quilt in the Snow

 Welcome to Treadlestitches!

It's gently snowing this morning, and for the first time this season it's sticking.  We're not expected to get more than a couple of inches, but the weather is letting us know what is ahead.  It looked like a good place to put my latest donation quilt finish, a 16 patch baby-size quilt.

The back is a warm flannel print, and the batting is the new poly batt Joey brought me.  It was easy to quilt, and will be nice and warm for a child to snuggle under.  It hasn't been washed yet, but it's in line next, after the Thanksgiving tablecloths.

I used the same border fabric as the Crossroads quilt I finished at the end of October.  The colors are set as a sort of rainbow.

There are so many little "pictures" in the 2 in. finished squares.  I spy a monkey, a ladybug, a football, letters, a frog, a hedgehog, and even a chicken.

The 16 patch above is the 4th Rainbow Scrap Challenge quilt I've made this year.  There is a fifth one not quite finished yet, and then there is this big pile of blocks, waiting to be assembled.  Yikes!  I am probably not going to get done by the end of the year.  Maybe I should make fewer blocks next year.  Or bigger quilts!

Remember this RSC quilt from last year?  I finished it in January, and later donated it to the GSAFE Quilt and Fiber Art Auction, which starts this Tuesday, Nov. 28.  GSAFE is an organization that works to help LGBT youth in schools.  Click HERE to learn more about GSAFE.

I have three quilts in the auction, and there are hundreds more items.  The theme is In Rainbowland, which really fits with the RSC quilts, I think!  If you're interested, you can click HERE to preview the auction items.  Bidding starts on Tuesday.  The goal is to raise $30,000.  By the way, my quilts are numbers 231, 236, and 237.
 

I hope everyone who celebrates had a happy Thanksgiving.  I know we did!  My little grandsons and I made the pies on Wednesday.  They stirred up the pumpkin filling and rolled out their pie crust (with help of course!)  Each of them made a small pie, and got to eat it after lunch as an early Thanksgiving treat.

What is this Guy doing?  Is he a robot, or an astronaut?  Believe it or not, there is a practical reason for Little Guy wearing this on his head.

The boys' school was closed for the holiday all week, so on Monday we took them to one of Hubby and Buddy's favorite stores, The Gem Shop, Inc. in Cedarburg.  We bought some small geodes, and everybody had to wear eye protection when Hubby cracked them open.  We had safety glasses for Buddy, but none for Little Guy, so Hubby put that plastic dome on his head.  He liked it so much he wore it off and on the rest of the day.

With Thanksgiving behind us, we're getting ready for the busy Christmas season.  I hope the boys will help us decorate this week, and we'll be getting out all the Christmas quilts.

Have a lovely week!

Cheers for reading this,

Sylvia@Treadlestitches

Linking up with:

Alycia at Finished or Not Finished Friday

Angela at So Scrappy

Cynthia at Oh Scrap