Snakes In A Tree

The Snakes in the Grass quilt is finished, and has been renamed Snakes in a Tree.  Don't worry, people-like-me-who-are-freaked-out-by-snakes!  It's not real snakes, just snakes printed on fabric and made into a child's quilt.
Here's a photo from July, when I pieced it:

The pattern is HERE, a great tutorial for a fun, easy scrap quilt.  Only 5 seams in each block, no kidding!  A big thank you to Cyndy from Quilting is More Fun Than Housework.

Mrs. Pfaff and I got the quilting and binding done this week.  It's ready to go to a child who needs it.

My Little Buddy posed with it outside.  Unfortunately, he now thinks it's his, like all the other quilts in the house.  (He especially loves the little bit of Minions fabric pieced in one block.  I need to make a quilt with that fabric just for him.  Yep, it's going on the list.)

Little Buddy's really been noticing all the little figures in prints lately.  He loves to lay the quilts on the floor and "see".  He wants Grandma to come and see, too.

He would love these Fly Away Home blocks for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge.  The color for August is orange, one of my favorites.

I've even got orange Minions!

Bugs, too!  I can't wait to start putting this top together.

I should have some more time soon, after I get the canning and freezing done for the year.  These green beans are cleaned, snapped, blanched, and headed for the freezer.  I use canning jars (the ones that are also good for freezing).  They are reusable, so no extra cost and no plastic to throw away.  Plus they don't slide around in the freezer like freezer bags do.

This is a picture from a fun day.  My husband and I went to the flea market in Elkhorn, Wisconsin a week ago Sunday.  This was my favorite booth.  No, I didn't buy anything, but a girl can look, can't she?  Lots of inspiration here for future quilts.
I'm wishing lots of inspiration for you this week, and every week!
Cheers for reading,
Sylvia@Treadlestitches
Linking up with  Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict,
Myra at Busy Hands Quilts

Snakes in the Grass

I am so lucky!  I belong to a great group of quilters.  We do a lot of work for charities, generally getting together once a month to sew.
Unfortunately, I can't sew with them now that I'm babysitting full time.  My little buddy likes to go with me to visit with the ladies and take photos for the blog, but we don't usually last longer than half an hour.
Since I can't help in person, I like to take home something to work on in the evenings, or when Little Buddy has his nap.  Here are some of the strips I took home last time.

Can you see the print in the orange?  Yes, it's snakes!  Yikes!  I am NOT a fan of snakes.  I just can't help it, even though I know most snakes are harmless and actually do good by eating rodents, etc.

There were three different colorways of these snakes including red (above) and black.   So, kind of scary, but still very colorful, right?  I could just think of them as toy snakes.  Yeah, that's it.

So I used the snake strips and some other bright  and light strips from the group stash, and added in my own scraps, to make 16 patch blocks.  Here's the view from my makeshift design wall at the beginning of this week.

And here they are, finished into a top, resting on the grass.  The blocks measure 8 in. finished, and the quilt top is about 49 in. x 57 in.  I hope the child who gets this one will be charmed by the snakes.

I used the tutorial HERE to make these blocks up.  It was very quick and easy.  Thanks very much to Quilting is More Fun Than Housework for writing up the tutorial.  If you follow her directions, each block has only 5 seams (!), and the blocks fit together perfectly.
I'm still unplugged, as Mrs. Pfaff is not repaired yet, but the backing and batting are ready for quilting as soon as she is healthy again.

Here's how far I've gotten on the RSC challenge this month.  Our new color is red.

Are you wondering what this is?  This is part of my new system for storing 2.5 in. strips.

This is an overhead view of the brights drawer.  Each color of strips are rolled up together, so I don't have to go hunting through the drawer to find them.  You can probably tell which colors haven't been used yet  for the RSC challenge (especially dark blue and orange).  There are also rolls for multi-colored strips and a special one for Kaffe Fassett fabric.
The red rolls above are reproduction fabric (on the left) and bright reds (on the right).  Nothing is ready to sew yet, but the fabric is out of the drawer, so that's a start.
Red is the perfect color for early summer.

Strawberries had a short season here this year, but my oldest grandson and I picked them at the local farm last week, and the jam is in the cupboard ready for winter or giveaways to family and friends.

Our raspberries are ripe at last!  Little Buddy helps me pick every morning.  By help, I mean he holds out his hand and says "yum-iny" and I give him berries.

Even with his help, lots of red berries make it into the house.  This is what I picked today.

And here's the design wall right now, full of novelty hearts.  I've got whales, owls, bananas, monsters, monster trucks, cats, dogs, even sharks.
But no snakes.

I'm wishing a lovely week for you, and lots of lovely quilts.
Cheers,
Sylvia@Treadlestitches
Linking up with So Scrappy
Can I Get A Whoop Whoop 
Oh Scrap