Sunday, May 3, 2026

Back to tatting


It feels like I haven't tatted in forever, but it's only been about a week and a half. It's nice to be well past the halfway point of round 17 of Renulek's Spring Doily 2026.

We had a lovely visit with my sister this weekend. On Saturday, we went to a garden center and then went to lunch. Daughter Carol joined us. Janet and Carol each found something for their gardens. I saw many things that I really liked, but I've learned to not purchase plants without Dave along. I always seem to choose something that won't grow well in our yard.

I did spend some time exploring quilting techniques today, but I don't really have anything to show for it. I will keep working on quilt blocks, but my focus is going to be on my doily. I feel like I'm so close to finishing it!

Saturday, May 2, 2026

Patriotic pot holder quilt

 

I just finished my patriotic pot holder quilt! My sister Janet is visiting, so she helped me hold it up so that Mom could take pictures for me.

I love the way the machine quilting looks on the back, and I like that binding each block gives a stained glass appearance.

The quilt is larger than I originally planned. It just covers the top of my queen sized bed. It would be easy enough to add to this quilt if I wanted it to fit my bed as more than a topper.

For now, I think I'll keep it on the back of my love seat. It certainly brightens up the room!

Friday, May 1, 2026

Five!

 

Thanks to some late night stitching on Wednesday, I was able to finish attaching the fifth row of my quilt last night. That's a nice accomplishment, considering I was gone from home from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

With only three strips left to attach, I'm pretty confident that I can finish by Wednesday. After that, I will focus on Renulek's Spring Doily 2026. It's good to set goals!

Thursday, April 30, 2026

Four!

 

I really didn't think I'd be able to finish sewing the fourth strip on yesterday, but I did it! I talked with the four senior girls who have been the most interested in my crafting. Next week is their last week of school, and with all of the awards luncheons taking place at this time of year, finding time to get together has been difficult. We agreed on next Wednesday for the big quilt reveal at school. I'm sure that gives me plenty of time to finish. I'm really missing my tatting, but every minute counts with finishing this quilt. 

Prom is tomorrow night, which means early dismissal for students and no lunch duty for me tomorrow. My sister is coming to visit for the weekend. It's supposed to be cool this weekend, so I'm pretty sure we will spend most of our time crafting indoors. What a wonderful way to relax!

Wednesday, April 29, 2026

Quilting fun

When I'm working on a project, I find the reading novels, watching videos, or reading about patterns helps to keep me focused on what I'm doing. While I've been working on my patriotic quilt, I've been reading The Quilter's Apprentice by Jennifer Chiaverini. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, so much so that I ordered the second book in the Elm Creek Quilts series.


Yesterday proved to be very busy, so I didn't complete adding the third strip to my quilt until just before bedtime. Today will be busy as well, so I might not be able to finish adding the fourth strip today. Still, I will give it my best try!

Monday, April 27, 2026

Two!

 

My first two strips are sewn together. I had hoped to accomplish more, but I was called in to sub at the last minute today.

I have to admit that my fingers are a bit sore from all this hand sewing, but that's probably because I've spent so many hours hand sewing each day. I'm also sewing through multiple thicknesses. It looks like it is possible for me to finish my quilt within the next week, and that's exciting!

Strips!

 

My strips are all made! Now it's time to sew the strips together. I'm really loving this pot holder quilt technique!

Saturday, April 25, 2026

It didn't happen

Tatting didn't happen today. Dave and I did get the plants we planned on purchasing today, plus a few extra. I planned on joining our Tollway Tatters meeting when we returned home, but I couldn't get an Internet connection.

Instead, Mom and I went grocery shopping, and Dave planted potatoes. After lunch, Dave roto-tilled the garden beds in preparation for planting our new trees and bushes. We then spent quite a bit of time determining where the plants would go. We've decided that we do need a few more plants to fill the spaces, but that will probably wait until at least next week.

With a few minutes to spare here and there, I managed to finish the fifth strip of my patriotic quilt. I only have three strips left to finish, and then I can begin joining the strips. I realized today that our seniors only have two weeks of school left, and they're the ones most interested in seeing my finished quilt. Can I finish it before they leave school? I'm going to give it a try!

Sub day

Yesterday was Drive Your Tractor to School Day, a huge celebration of our farming community that happens every Spring. A huge breakfast is served (bacon, sausage, pancakes, biscuits and gravy, scrambled eggs, hash browns, coffee, juice, milk), and then the students and staff gather around the flag pole to recite the Pledge of Allegiance. 

The students then drive their tractors down to the elementary school so that all the younger students can see the tractor parade and have their pictures taken next to these huge machines. Middle school and high school students get to see the tractors again in the afternoon.

Our middle school science teacher heads the FFA and has carried on the tradition that started many years ago. Since he is part of all the activities, a sub was needed for him in the morning. So, I spent the morning with middle school students, who have more energy than you can possibly imagine. I was worn out by the time my normal lunch duty was finished!

I didn't have the brain power left to concentrate on tatting, so I finished up the fourth row of my patriotic quilt. This is going to be much larger than a normal lap quilt and smaller than what I need for our bed. However, it can be a topper. Maybe I'll just give it to one of my tall relatives!

Dave has been busy working on the landscaping in our yard. He has been trimming dead branches and taking down dead trees so that our yard looks neater. However, that means that we are losing some of the character that we love. So, he placed an order with a man we have been purchasing from for years. We're heading out this morning to pick up our order. If I make it to our monthly Tollway Tatters meeting, I will most likely be late. It's supposed to be a beautiful weekend, perfect for outdoor work. I, of course, will sit and observe while Dave does all the work. I might even sit and tat!

Thursday, April 23, 2026

Whip stitch


My sister Janet asked me to send her some photos of whip stitch so that she could see how my quilt blocks are joined together. I've been holding two right sides together, whip stitching on the back side of the blocks.


So far, my stitches don't show on the front side.


The hand stitching helps me ease in any extra fabric if the two blocks aren't exactly even.

So far, so good! I now have three of my eight rows sewn together. 


Despite a busy schedule today, I also managed to get some tatting done. I had hoped to get half way around, but it didn't happen. Hopefully, I'll meet the halfway mark tomorrow!

Wednesday, April 22, 2026

Sunshine!

 

We had a beautiful day filled with sunshine, which made it difficult to take a good picture of my progress on Renulek's Spring Doily 2026. I'm 1/4 of the way through round 17. I really like that the rounds in this doily have been easy to follow. It's nice to not have to follow step by step instructions for each round.

I have two strips finished on my patriotic quilt. I'm going the combine the blocks for each strip before joining the eight strips together. That way, I can still make changes to the arrangement if I want to.

I'm really enjoying this pot holder technique, and I'm having great fun looking at possibilities for future projects!

Tuesday, April 21, 2026

Quilt day

 


I only tatted a couple of rings and chains today, because I concentrated on my quilt.


It took me a while, but I think I've found a layout that I like. I have the rows grouped and marked so that I can keep the layout.


I've sewn my first row together, and I'm really pleased with the way it is going. There are six blocks in a row and eight rows. I think there's a good chance I will finish my quilt before school is out for the summer!

Monday, April 20, 2026

Baby blue

 

I've started round 17 of Renulek's Spring Doily 2026 in size 20 Lizbeth #649 Baby Blue. I didn't get very far, but I'm pleased with what I did complete.

Today, I focused on finishing the blue bound quilt blocks, and they are now done! I plan on laying out the blocks tomorrow and pinning them together. I'm eager to see how this pot holder quilt method works for me. I already have ideas on how to improve my technique for my next project. I just need to decide what that project will be!

Sunday, April 19, 2026

Round 16

 

I am so pleased that I was able to finish round 16 of Renulek's Spring Doily 2026 today. This round was done in size 20 Lizbeth #646 Purple Iris Lt. I've already chosen my color for round 17, which I hope to start tomorrow.


I was also able to finish two more quilt blocks. I only have three more to bind and then I can start putting the blocks together!

Saturday, April 18, 2026

As expected

 

I knew that I would not have much time for tatting today, but I did have about an hour this morning to make a little progress.

Mom needed a couple of things returned, and after that I headed to daughter Carol's house so that we could attend a bridal shower for her step-son's fiancé. We had a wonderful time!

After that, I headed to a memorial gathering for my friend Mary Lou's mother. Phyllis was a wonderful lady who lived to be 102 years old. I know Mary Lou will miss her mother, but it's nice to know that we have great memories of her to share with each other.

So much activity in one day was a clear indicator that I would not be in the mood for cooking dinner. I picked up some carry-out. The bonus was an easy after dinner clean up!

Friday, April 17, 2026

Sewing day


We had another sewing day at school. Marley brought a sewing machine from her grandmother's house. Since we had already cleaned a machine the day before, she knew just what to do. After cleaning it, Marley did a practice run. She's all set to practice at home this weekend.

Lily practiced sewing straight lines one paper. She helped clean this machine yesterday, and was ready to give it a test run. Daron and James also took turns sewing along a line.

Next week, we hope to put together a prom dress made out of paper seed sacks, an FFA challenge. The official contest deadline has passed, but we figure that this is a trial run so that the students can enter the contest next year.

Two more quilt blocks are finished. I'm really looking forward to laying out these blocks and then sewing them together for a lap quilt.

I almost made it to the 3/4 mark on round 16 of Renulek's Spring Doily 2026. I'm not sure that I'll reach my goal of finishing this round by Saturday, but I should be able to finish it before the weekend is over.

Tomorrow will be a busy day, but also a fun one!

 

Thursday, April 16, 2026

More than halfway

 

I spent some extra time at school helping kids learn about sewing machines today, so I didn't have much time to craft. However, I did manage to pass the halfway mark of round 16 of Renulek's Spring Doily 2026.

I also finished one quilt block. I'll be spending extra time at school tomorrow as well, so I probably won't get too much done. Oh, well. I'm still having fun!

Wednesday, April 15, 2026

Almost halfway

 

I almost hit the halfway mark of round 16 of Renulek's Spring Doily 2026. Maybe that means I can finish by Saturday.

Two more quilt blocks are finished. I hope to have them all finished by the end of next week. After that I will be able to lay out the blocks and start sewing them together. This should be fun!

Tuesday, April 14, 2026

1/4

 

I"m a little more than 1/4 of the way around round 16 of Renulek's Spring Doily 2026. I wonder if there's any chance of me finishing this round by Saturday?

Monday, April 13, 2026

Video day

 

I went down a rabbit hole of watching sewing and quilting videos on YouTube today. As a result, I finished off three more quilt blocks. However, there was no tatting. I feel like my day is incomplete!

Sunday, April 12, 2026

Unexpected

We had some unexpected guests today. Daughter Andrea and family stopped by on their way home from Kentucky. It was a short visit, but oh so sweet!

I also had a phone call from my college roommate. Eileen and I have known each other since our senior year in high school. We were roommates in college for two years. I took a year off after sophomore year. Eileen left after junior year and married her husband Tom. Our friendship has been one of those where we might not talk for months, but we pick up where we left off. I couldn't ask for a better friend.

I missed Tollway Tatters, but I did manage to finish two more quilt blocks. I now have ten of the 24 blue blocks finished.


I've chosen my color for round 16 of Renulek's Spring Doily 2026, size 20 Lizbeth # 646 Purple Iris Lt. 

I'm itching to try some new patterns, so I may get started on another project. We'll see how the week goes!

Saturday, April 11, 2026

Round 15

 

I've very pleased that I finished round 15 of Renulek's Spring Doily 2026 today. I took a quick peek at round 16, and it looks like another round that will be easy to memorize.


Back in the 1980s, I was fascinated with Georgia Bonesteel and her lap quilting method. There was only one station that aired the show, and it was not a local station. The video and sound quality were not fantastic because of the poor reception. 

I was thinking about that show this morning, and today I watched the whole first season on YouTube (Lap Quilting with Georgia Bonesteel) while tatting and working on quilt blocks. It's been a great day!

Friday, April 10, 2026

3/4

 

I'm a little more than 3/4 of the way around Renulek's Spring Doily 2026. I plan on finishing round 15 tomorrow.

Two more quilt blocks are ready to go. One thing good about spending so much time hand stitching is that I've been able to really think about ways to make this process easier. I feel committed to finishing this one the way I started it so that everything is consistent, but I'm eager to try out some of the ideas that have been going through my head. I'll be a little smarter next time and practice on small pieces that can be table toppers. I am having fun!

Thursday, April 9, 2026

I made it!

 

I was able to get to the halfway point of round 15 of Renulek's Spring Doily 2026. That was the main thing I wanted to accomplish today, so I'm feeling pretty good.

I also finished one more quilt block. The quilt blocks are taking a little longer than I thought they would, mainly because I've been distracted by other things. Still, I'm not in a rush. After all, I am retired!

Wednesday, April 8, 2026

Almost halfway!

 

Last night I started round 15 of Renulek's Spring Doily 2026 in size 20 Lizbeth #633 Purple Dk. I only tatted a couple of rings and chains, but it was enough to get me started. I really just picked this up and tatted in between things I was doing around the house, so I was very pleased with my progress!

Tuesday, April 7, 2026

Round 14

 

The house is still pretty clean thanks to getting ready for Easter, so my chores were minimal today. That left me plenty of time for tatting.

Round 14 of Renulek's Spring Doily 2026 is in size 20 Lizbeth #640 Antique Violet Med. Daughter Joanne loves the way this one looks, so this one will be for her.

Now I have to decide which color to use next!

Monday, April 6, 2026

Family fun

 


We had a wonderful family gathering for Easter. Not everyone was able to be here, but we still had a great time.

I fell a little short of my goal today, which was to get 3/4 of round 14 of Renulek's Spring Doily 2026 finished. I have one pattern repeat to go. My hope is to complete this round by Wednesday.


Two of the blue bound blocks for my patriotic quilt are finished. I was only going to try and finish one per day, but I figured two is better than one!