Homework

 Welcome to Treadlestitches!  

I hope you're having a good week.

The quilt group I belong to is amazing.  One of the reasons I joined this group was their strong focus on making quilts and other items for people in need.  We all participate in our own ways, donating fabric, making blocks or quilt tops, saving labels and coupons for discounts on batting, etc.  This little quilt was part of my homework this month.  The group supplied the top, backing fabric, and batting.  I did the quilting.  

We have a small group of dedicated long-arm quilters on our charity committee.  In the last year, our group has donated at least 85 quilts, large and small, to local hospitals, homeless shelters, nursing homes, veterans, a hospice center, a center for abused children, Jack's Basket, and even the Humane Society.  The majority of the quilts were quilted by our long-arm volunteers. 

Some of the smaller quilts, like this one, can be easily quilted on a regular domestic sewing machine.  So some of us have volunteered to do just that.

You might wonder if I made this top, when you see all the novelty prints!  (Love those cats!)  But I can't claim credit for it.  Maybe when I bring it to the meeting next week I can find out who made it.

Here's the back, a soft green print.  The quilting is my usual go-to, a serpentine stitch grid.  I first saw this kind of quilting done many years ago by Laverne D., one of our group members, and really liked it.  This little quilt will be a warm and cheerful lap robe for someone in a nursing home.

A little more homework!  One of our guild members has been bringing flannel hearts for us to sew.  She very kindly packages them in groups of five, pre-cut and ready to go.  These hearts go to a local hospital, for use in the newborn intensive care unit (NICU).  Mothers of preemies pin the hearts inside their clothes to pick up their scent.  Then the heart is placed with the baby.  I must admit I had a little trouble getting these hearts sewn right (which is why you can't see all of them!).  More practice needed.

Here's my last homework project, which is not done yet.  Doesn't this look like a modern art painting?  It measures 30 in. x 56 in. which is kind of an awkward size.  If I add some borders, it could be a useful quilt for a local men's shelter, to go on a cot.  I'm thinking of adding black print borders just to the sides to make it wider, and then a scrappy piano keys border all around.  What would you do?  I'm open to other ideas.

As if I didn't have enough work to do, I keep bringing more home!  We went to the orchard on Wednesday and got a bushel of apples and a peck of pears.  I've got 17 pints of applesauce made from half the apples, hope that's enough.  We ran out last year, and commercial applesauce is just not the same.  Today I should finish canning the other half bushel as pie apples, and then I'll start on the pears.  Lids are still hard to get, so I'm just using what I've got left over from last year.

Friday morning was a Stash Enhancement Experience!  A quilt guild from a neighboring town held a quilters' rummage sale, which they call Granny's Attic.  They usually hold it as part of their quilt show, but the pandemic has prevented them from having shows the last two years.  Their members donate the fabric, and they use the money they raise for their own charity projects, including scholarships for area students.  I'm happy to say I helped them raise some cash!  I got some very cute fabric for less than I would pay in the store.

And now for something weird!

Just for fun, Baby Buddy's daddy pulled his shirt over his head!  He thought it was funny, and ran around after us, making this toy bear growl at everybody.  We have big fun around here.  

Looking after this little guy is my favorite kind of home work.  Even more fun than quilting!

As always, have fun and stay safe this week.

Cheers for reading,

Sylvia@Treadlestitches

Check out these linky parties.  Lots of great inspiration!

Alycia at Finished or Not Finished Friday

Angela at So Scrappy

Sarah at Can I Get A Whoop Whoop

Cynthia at Oh Scrap