marie webster

My February One monthly Goal was to spend some time every day, to work on my American Beauty Rose quilt designed by Marie Webster in the early 1900s. 

I was able to cut, and sew  most of the quilt and have completed 2 blocks and one more will be finished by the end of the month. I am very happy with the results. At this point, I plan to  prepare a few blocks for the hand stitching and leave it by my chair in the living room. Then, I can just put in a few stitches when time allows. 

"Marie Webster's quilts have been favorites of quilt makers ever since they were published over 80 years ago, and all quilt makers owe her a debt. Her designs... sparked a revolution in quilt design on the heels of the arts and crafts movement and the colonial revival, which emphasized the return to simpler traditions and handmade objects. Webster's quilts, the first to be published in color in Ladies Home Journal, were based on floral patterns which 'revitalized the art of applique with fresh new forms and a palette of pastel colors that would become the hallmark of American quilts in the 1920s and '30s.'

 Marie Webster was born in 1859 in a small town in rural northern Indiana..She married a successful businessman, George Webster, in 1884, and following an extended honeymoon the couple settled in Chicago. A few years later, the Webster’s moved to George’s home town of Marion, Indiana, a manufacturing center.  She had been embroidering household linens since she was a child, but did not make her first quilt until 1909, when she was 50 years old. Becoming a quilt enthusiast, she found the popular geometric pieced quilts not to her liking, and so applied her own patterns.  In the January 1, 1911 issue, Editor Edward Bok featured four full-color quilt designs of the amateur Marie Webster. With a circulation of over 1.5 million readers, the magazine made Marie Webster a household name. Readers wrote her for patterns. Within one month of the Ladies Home Journal publication, Webster was selling her quilt patterns for 50 cents. Her fame spreading, the New York publisher Doubleday, page & Co. invited Marie Webster to write a book on the history of quilting. Tracing the history back to ancient Egypt and up to America, Webster completed the book, which was published in 1915 as Quilts: Their Story and How to Make Them.

In 1921 she formed, with two friends, The Practical Patchwork Company, and her manufacture of quilt patterns evolved into a true cottage industry. "

I am linking to:

Making Monday

Moving it Forward Monday 

 Patchwork Times

Main Crush Monday

 and One monthly Goal

stash report Feb 26, 2017

These fabric finds were kits i found at Goodwill. I'm not interested in the patterns, but there was 5.5 yards of lovely fabric for 5 dollars.

Stash report

Fabric Used this Week: 0 yards
Fabric Used year to Date: 133 1/2 yards
Fabric Added this Week: 5.5 yards
Fabric Added Year to Date: 37 yards

Net Fabric for 2017: 97 1/4 yards more used than added

I finished this block for last year's guild president for her president's quilt. She requested this block in reproduction fabrics. It's called "Milton's musket ball". it uses 2 inch squares and finishes at 7 1/2 x 7 1/2. odd size?

after our success at canning baked beans last week, I decided I wanted to can some more in quart jars. The tattler lids ( reuseable) worked a second time around. I am so excited to add this to my 'fix in a hurry' list, when I don't want to cook. The recipe is yummy and tastes like Bush's baked beans. I doubled it and only got 6 quarts from it. Then I did 3 pounds of beans, and it was just a bit short.

I am linking to:

Patchwork Times

Slow Sunday Stitching

Sunday Stash

Over the rainbow

Sea green everywhere

I have remained current with the rainbow scrap challenge for two whole months. hooray. I finished the last of the big leaves in February sea green last night.

That is 10 blocks for pineapple blossom with 40 - 1/2 square triangles for the border and 18 big leaves. I am ready for the next color.:) Any guesses?

The happy Birds group met yesterday. We are helping a young woman make a T-shirt quilt. and another happy birds top was finished. This is Linda's and she has made a wonderful version. I am so far behind sigh....

She has also finished a new york beauty sunflower quilt.
Oh my it is more stunning in real life.

 SewCan She
rsc17 super saturday

Coins on graves

I had a great question about our trip to Crown Hill Cemetery about the coins found on some of the tombstones. I had a vague recollection of this tradition, but had not personally seen it. There was a plaque at James Whitcomb Riley's grave explaining that all coins were donated to the Riley foundation which bears his name and responsible for our wonderful children's hospital here in Indiana.
I did some digging. There are some who assume the tradition is from paying the ferryman over the river Styz in Greek mythology. For some pennies left on graves are in remembrance of the deceased, leaving a part of yourself as a show of respect and support.
 But the most inspiring accounts, talk about a special custom among the military called the Coin salute - a comaraderie of brothers in arms.
A single penny means someone has visited to pay their respect and as a comfort to the family. A nickel indicates that they were in boot camp together. A dime is left by someone who served with them. But a quarter signifies that they were present when the soldier died.
How wonderful.

A finish- I love them

I have made these socks four times over with the mistakes and redos. sigh...
I have more yarn leftover than expected, so I bought a solid gray and will combine the two for another pair of socks.

I have been stockpiling pieces for American Beauty Rose quilt so that i can hand stitch in the evenings.

And, finally more blue skies for my knit the sky scarf.

I am linking to:

TGIFF

FInished or Not Friday

WHoop Whoop

Crazy Mom Finish Fridays

Fort Worth Fabric Studio

Patchwork Times

My lists

I have lists. Sometimes, I follow them as if they were a treasure . But, Sometimes, I ignore them and perhaps hide them ( although I think they walk about on their own). My favorite list is on the computer using a program called trello. I love it because I can make it a visual list, and I can arrange the lists side by side. I visit it a couple times of day, just to be inspired.

There is the magic of moving a "card" from one list to another. For instance, when the planning is done, I can drag it and drop it in the cut list. When the cutting is done, I can drag it to the sew list.
I try to keep the working part of the lists small with just a few tasks. But the dream side of the list is chock full of inspiration.

The UFO list is arguably too long, But, maybe someday list is even longer. When I see something I like visiting around the internet, I add it to the list. It makes me a very happy girl to scroll through and think I might someday make these beauties. And occasionally, a maybe someday moves to planning. Oh happy day. Most of my pictures are from where I find them. So I want to share a few and hope that squares with copyright issues.

next to be quilted ( all finished and ready to be quilted): butterflys

Easy street - Bonnie Hunter

celtic solstice - Bonnie Hunter

The top on my maybe someday list :

from Em's scrapbag. It bounces from here to planning a lot,which means I really want to make it, I just can't fit it in just yet. But the Spring colors, the scraps, are so appealing right?  There is more than one of Em's quilts on my maybe someday list. Hooray for Em.

My Grand children and I also visited the Soldiers and Sailor's monument in downtown Indy. What a testament to courage and bravery. It had popped up into my radar again when my daughter mentioned that she had just met the Grandaughter of the man who built it. In Utah. at a quilt meeting. Small world.
But the biggest sign of bravery here - My husband proposed to me here in 1974.

 We visited the eskenazi sky garden fo another view of the skyline.

I am linking to:
needle and thread thursdays
oh scrap

A bit of history

There is a bit of calm while hand stitching, even if I am not very good at it. This is for block #2 of American Beauty Rose., Which doesn't sound like much for a month's worth of work, but from here, all the preparation and cutting and learning will speed up the process. And I am feeling more confident.

And block #2 is finished. It looks just like block #1. haha

We have had a very mild February. For President's Day I borrowed my two oldest Grandchildren and we spent the day in Indianapolis. Our main goal was to explore Crown Hill Cemetery. It is the final resting place of many famous people. The first burial was in 1864 - Ann Seton.  I thought the whole experience was wonderful. And, fortunately, so did my Grandchildren. They may not appreciate their walk through 153 years of history. But they were fascinated by John Dillinger, President of the United States Benjamin Harrison, Colonel Eli Lily, 3 vice presidents of the United States, Govenor Morton from the civil war, the field of valor, the inventor of the Gatling gun, and my personal visit to James Whitcomb Riley beloved poet.

The confederate soldier  plot with a history lesson.

I was worried that we wouldn't be respectful enough, but I was very proud of my Grands.They were interested and careful, and maybe felt the sacredness of this place. They both really liked reading the map and figuring our route and location.
And a wonderful view of the skyline

I am linking to:
WOW
Midweek Makers
Jo's Country Junction UFO
Bee Social
Silly Mama WIP

stash report Feb 19, 2017

I bought some Easter fabric this week during Joann's almost great president day sale. I have a couple of projects in mind.

and I found Kona remnants while I was there.I don't have a huge assortment of solids.

Stash report

Fabric Used this Week: 0 yards
Fabric Used year to Date: 133 1/2 yards
Fabric Added this Week: 6 yards
Fabric Added Year to Date: 31 1/2 yards

Net Fabric for 2017: 102 1/4 yards used more than added

Over Christmas, my Christmas Cactus  dropped a couple of leaves. My husband took them to the basement grow light and planted them to see if we could grow more from them. Now, we have an entire colony of cute, baby Christmas cactus, I have started potting them in give away containers.

Saturday I wanted to try a new canning lid that I discovered via the internet. They are reuseable. I was nearly out of wide mouth lids anyway. I found them easy to use. I watched a few you tube videos and followed their hints and tricks, and they all sealed successfully. I am pretty excited. I like to can a few things every year, but I really hate paying for the lids. Strictly speaking, after purchasing lids, I can almost buy a can at the store cheaper than canning it. Reuseable sounds really economical.

The lids come as a 2 piece unit.

I tried with baked beans. I found a copycat recipe for Bush's baked beans. Beans used to be the cheap food we ate a lot with 5 children. Now, a can of beans is way over priced in my opinion.

So speaking of canning. I found this really great quilt called Canning Season quilt. Looks much prettier than my baked beans.

It looks like a great quilt along here. I think it would be a great way to use bonus triangles Bonnie Hunter style.It's going on my wish list.

I am linking to:

Patchwork Times

Slow Sunday Stitching

Sunday Stash

Feeling green

Oh my

Just a bit of sea green sewing this week. I made the 1/2 square triangles I will need in the border of my quilt. And I am working on the big leaves I am making with each color.

I am really enjoying the Rainbow Scrap challenge. I seem to see the month's color everywhere, and being more aware is always a plus. The little bit I am doing is already making a nice size pile that is rewarding, and I am not bored making the parts because a new color is a new experience each month.

This quilt was finished by my friend Linda and it was a lovely shade of sea green. She is such  a talented quilter.

 SewCan She
rsc17 super saturday

A Rose

I have all the pieces hand stitched for my first complete American Beauty Rose block. I enjoyed the process. I think I need to cut away some of the backs on the rose applique. I learned I need to iron the piece from the back to actually get them to stick to the front. Some of the pieces tried to jump ship during the stitching process. It took less than week to attach and sew. I think I can handle that. So far it is a go for a tabletopper. If all goes well then, we will consider a wall hanging, then a lap quilt, then a bed quilt, etc.

I finished the first set of hourglass blocks for my civil war version of En Provence.

I have been ironing all 576 bonus 2 inch triangles from Midnight flight to use in scrap crystals. That is alot of ironing .

I have been making more of the pieces for the Rose quilt and I am ready to prepare another block for hand stitching.

I am so close on this sock, that I have been more obsessed with working on it in the evenings.

I am linking to:
TGIFF
FInished or Not Friday
WHoop Whoop
Crazy Mom Finish Fridays
Fort Worth Fabric Studio
Patchwork Times
needle and thread thursdays