Japanese Circles

This is from Karen Costello Soltys' book Bits and Pieces - I've done 6 quilts from that book. If you're a new quilter, like I am, get this book! Pick one or two from each "chapter," and do them in order - you learn so much, as I did - from squares and rectangles, in chapter one, to triangles in chapter two, to diamonds in chapter three, to appliqué (different kinds) in the last chapter. This little quilt was so fun! My circles aren't perfect, but I don't care - the overall effect of this piece is beautiful.

Americana Nine-Patch

Hello from Parcher's Resort in the Sierras - where I accidentally discovered I had WiFi. I booted up the computer to look for a block pattern I'd saved, and there it was. So now I'm busy checking email, viewing all the posts on Google Reader, and updating two of my three blogs. I'll be posting the travel-camping-fishing pics on Wanderlust, but don't have any new cooking-related stories to tell.

The little quilt shown above is another one from Karen Costello Soltys' Bits and Pieces. I wanted to do a patriotic quilt for July. This is basically nine-patches and snowballed-squares. Easy and quick.

Some little quilts finished

See the wavy, wonky edges? That's because I'm new to making something with so many bias edges. Maybe it'll look better hanging up, or as a table centerpiece. It's called "Antique Diamonds," and it's from the book Bits and Pieces by Karen Costello Soltys.

At the Chiloquin Quilt Show, there was a basket on the table with a sign that said "Please Take One." The basket was full of scraps, all in sets, and I pulled out a set of 6 three-inch batik charms. The little tag on the set said these were "Quilt Seeds," so I made a little mini-quilt from them.

I learned a lesson about quilting with this little guy. I learned that when you're making tiny stars, your alignment mistakes and seam allowance differences are magnified when you use dark thread to quilt straight lines. I wanted to do lines that followed the seams, but my seams weren't in straight lines! Oh well. This is called "Honeymoon in Vegas," and it's from Lori Smith's packet of fat quarter patterns. The company is called From my heart to your hands.