Quilt back, links and the last of the wild flowers

While looking at all the wonderful quilts during the Bloggers Quilt Festival I found a great pattern for the back of my Disappearing 9 Patch quilt here on Valori Wells blog. I had been thinking of doing a pieced back so I was really glad to find this. I changed it a little because the pattern is for a larger quilt and I added in bits and pieces I had left from a different 9-patch project. After I took this picture this morning, I got right to it and the quilt is basted!

I've joined my first swap and I'm very excited! Its called Spring Blossoms Mini Quilt Swap and its hosted by Michele from the Quilting Gallery.

I've also found the Shabby Rose BOM. This BOM combines two of my favorite things: applique and embroidery. I'm a little late getting started, Block 3 was just posted, but I'll catch up. I know exactly how I want to use the blocks from this BOM...I've been thinking of doing a shabby chic style disappearing 9 patch as a summer quilt for the guest room and I'll just sprinkle these in!

The weather has changed again, its been very warm but not at all sunny- kind of weird.

This is the last of the wildflowers (I know I haven't been very good about taking pictures) and the last of the green. The hills are all turning brown and that's it until next winter.

Here you can see a last stand of flowers surrounded by brown (except for the bushes and the olive tree.)

This and that applique and embroidery

I finished the February and March blocks for the A Tisket A Tasket BOM. I'm having alot of fun doing these but for now, applique is on hold. Allergy season has struck and even with medication, my eyes tear so much that I can't applique, I sneeze so vigorously and unexpectedly that I'm afraid to rotary cut and sewing on the machine, between the tears and the sneezes just isn't a good idea. But don't feel too sorry for me, there is always embroidery!

Here are two of the vintage embroidery patterns I showed last week...the girl and the boy will become pot holders soon. I also decided to try my hand at punchneedle embroidery.

I had no idea what I was doing but I was having alot of fun and I love the way this has turned out. It will be made into a pillow. The design is from an antique quilt, the Wickersham Signature Quilt. I got the book of patterns while visiting York, PA two years ago. There are lots of these funky basket blocks with the baskets way too small for the flowers. I love them!

I just picked up the needlepunch and pearl cotton and started away on the design I'd traced on the muslin. As I went along, I thought that I really didn't know what I was doing... why were there those big loops popping up and did I really need to knot? I found this great tutorial at Ribbons and Lace Cottage and after that things went even quicker and more smoothly.

I'm thinking of doing another...I love chenille and this is kind of similiar!

Quilting This and That

I've been so enchanted by the applique blocks that Susan has been doing, that I decided to do the BOM from Bunny Hill Designs also. This is the February block, all basted and ready for me to applique. This is the January block, finished! I was really ready to do a bit of hand applique again and this project is perfect: the blocks are small, cute and perfect for picking up in spare moments and doing a little hand sewing.

I also sewed up some wonky stars ( a first for me) to send to Tia. She is so generously hosting a project to collect blocks and sew them into quilts for Australian Bushfire sufferers.

These are ok but I think I need to work on my wonkiness!