Zip, zero, zilch

 

I accomplished absolutely nothing in the realm of crafting today. I received a last minute call to sub in the middle school, which I was happy to do. However, middle school students have unbelievable energy. I was exhausted when I returned home.

I only had two chapters left to read in Round Robin by Jennifer Chiaverini, so I unwound by reading. It was time well spent!

Happy Mother's Day!

We had a wonderful Mother's Day. My brother surprised Mom by coming to visit several weeks earlier than expected. I knew he was coming, but Mom was completely surprised. It was the best Mother's Day gift he could have given her.

Another block is finished for my next pot holder quilt.

It's fun coming up with different quilting patterns. I find myself looking at the backs of each block as I decide how I'm going to quilt the next block. I wonder how many quilting designs I can come up with?

This afternoon was tatting time. I worked until I ran out of thread on one of my shuttles. Once again, I chose the wrong time of day to take the picture. Still, I've noted my progress, and I guess that's what really counts.

Tonight I will wind more thread onto my shuttle so that I'm ready to tat in the morning!

Another quilting day

 I really planned on getting some tatting done today, but I got distracted with sorting fabrics and working on quilt blocks.

I had fun playing with fabrics for this block.

I really enjoying checking out the back of each block as I finish quilting it.

I had one block left from my Hidden Wells project, so I decided to bind it in purple. I'm not sure what I'll do with it. I may be able to incorporate it in another quilt.

I like the idea of having a decorative fabric on the reverse side, but I also like the solid. Which do you like?

Two hours

 

I had two hours of tatting time this morning, and that meant I made really good progress on round 18 of Renulek's Spring Doily 2026.

This was a fun quilt block to create. The instructions popped up in my Facebook feed. I think I might make this one again and try to get a bit more contrast. I think it looks better in person than in the picture.

I'm glad I checked the back side of this block before attaching the binding. I added a few more quilting lines, and I think it looks better on both sides. 

This is going to be a busy weekend, but I'm sure I'll fit in some crafting time!

Two repeats

We had a wonderful celebration of Luis at school this morning. He's an impressive young man, who has been declared cancer free. 

Since I attended the celebration, I didn't have as much time as I had hoped to work on tatting. However, I did finish two pattern repeats and my shuttles are fully loaded.

This afternoon I finished up another pot holder quilt block that I had started last night. Mom and I really like the way this one looks.

I checked the back to make sure I liked the quilting pattern before adding the binding. I think I have a plan for my next quilt!

Movin' along

 

I only managed two pattern repeats today. Round 18 of Renulek's Spring Doily 2026 is not difficult, but I do have to follow the instructions row by row. I really don't want to mess up this round.

I've started a new pot holder quilt. I'm using jelly rolls and 5" squares that I have recently purchased. These are surprise packs for me. Even though I can see the mix online, it always looks different to me when I receive it. I'm okay with that. It makes it easier for me to experiment.

I'm going to check the backs of my squares before binding. I wish I had done a little more quilting on this block. It looks perfect from the front, but the back looks a little too open for me. I may hand quilt a little motif in each of the little squares so that there isn't so much space between quilting lines.

We're having a celebration at school tomorrow morning for Luis, who was diagnosed with abdominal cancer a year ago at Christmas. He was pronounced cancer free about two weeks ago, which is definitely something to celebrate!

Another finished project

 

I had some squares left over from my wall hanging project, so I decided to try some techniques I've been learning about while finishing a table topper.

I joined the squares following a technique described by Georgia Bonesteel, a quilter I followed in the 1980s. The joining technique worked great, but since I didn't do a very good job piecing the squares, the piece looks pretty messy. If I use this method in the future, I will need to make sure that my quilting stops at least 5/8" of an inch from the edge so that I can join the blocks more easily.

I also tried putting the seam binding on completely by machine. The technique was okay, but I think I really prefer sewing the back side by hand.

Looking at the machine quilting, I've decided that I need to be a bit more careful with my back stitching so that it looks neater. Although I'm not thrilled with the final piece, I am keeping in mind that this was a practice piece for learning techniques new to me. As far as that goes, the project was a success!

I got a good start on round 18 of Renulek's Spring Doily 2026. I've chosen size 20 Lizbeth #622 Pink Med for this round.

Tomorrow I'm proctoring the AP Lit exam at school. The exam is from 8 -12. I'll take along a good book to read and my knitting. Knitting is a little quieter than tatting. Once the exam is over, I will supervise the two high school lunches, and then I will be ready to rest at home. I think I'll take it easy tonight!