Design Wall Monday - December 29, 2025

 Good Morning Quilters!  It’s our last Linky party of 2025.  This year has just flown by for me.  Has it for you?

This week I got a project out from time out and added two rounds to it.  The project is a combination of two of my UFOs - #1—-Collection for a Cause - Faith, a kit I bought of Moda fabrics.  And #2——-blocks from an internet 365 free blocks project from a few years ago.  

Here is the project right now:

And here was the last picture I showed you of this project:

So I can see progress.  It is 54” square right now, and next I will be adding more of the 6” pieced blocks from the 365 block project.  After they are added the quilt will be 66” square, and ready for the final outside borders.  Progress!

Here are some of the 6” pieced blocks that will be added in the next round:

I calculate I’ll need 40 of the 69 blocks that are 6” square (from that year of block making.)   So I will think up another project to use the remaining 29 blocks in.  It will happen.  

What are you finishing up before the year ends?  Join our Design Wall Linky Party below and show us what your last week has been like.  We. Are ready to read your blogs and look at all your pretty pictures.  Thank you so much for joining in.

Happy New Year!

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Design Wall Monday - December 22, 2025

Good Morning Quilters!   Merry Christmas!

Praying for joy in all of our little blessings this Christmas season.  There is much to be thankful for.

As for quilting, not much has been finished here, but I have a little bit to show you.   Here are two Jane Stickle quilt blocks that I re-made this week.  While sewing the rows together while at a retreat, I discovered two blocks where I had used dark green fabric instead of blue fabric.  Now that my cataracts have been removed, I can see colors much better, and decided that I would replace the two blocks.  So this week, that was accomplished, and here they are:

I am so happy that I can see colors so much brighter and clearer now.  And with these two re-makes, I can continue sewing the Jane Stickle rows together.  The outside triangles that are not finished will be back on the front burner in January.  At least that is my plan, which is always subject to change.  

The columns of the “In The Round” quilt on the design wall are being sewn together.  It is a peaceful quilt that is progressing nicely.   I am enjoying it.  The far left column……and the far right column are sewn.  I am always amazed at how much shorter a quilt becomes when the blocks are sewn together.  Here is a picture.

It is a good project to  get me to exercise, as I get blocks from the design wall……….walk over to the sewing machine………..and then after sewing a seam……..walk back and put them back on the design wall.  There is probably an easier way to do this, but the way I am doing it ensures that I keep the blocks in the correct order.

Since Christmas is this week, I will close with some pictures of decorations at our house each year.  

Real sleigh bells on the front door.  My MIL gifted them to us many years ago and I love them.  They make such a happy sound.

My snowman collection………..on the dresser opposite of our bed in the bedroom.  DH jokes, “How can I sleep with all these snowmen staring at me?”

Our manger scene is appropriate for our house because baby Jesus is covered with a quilt.   The set is made by the artist Jim Shore, who uses quilt patterns in his art.

One of the many Christmas pillows I bring out for the season.  I used tiny white buttons for the snowflakes.

I wish you all have a very merry Christmas, and will look forward to reading your blogs.  Please join in our Design Wall Monday Linky Party below.

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Design Wall Monday - December 15, 2025

Good Morning Quilters!

Since all the hourglass blocks are completed for “In the Round”, the design wall was the next step.  I put it on the design wall last night:

It is going together so fast, and is just what I need at this time.  God is good.

Thursday we flew to Lubbock, Texas to attend our Granddaughter Sophie’s graduation from Texas Tech, and we just arrived home last night.  Here’s a picture of our happy graduate:

It was great seeing family and celebrating Sophie’s hard work.  What happy pictures do you have to show us this Monday?  Please link up with our Design Wall Monday Linky Party below and let us celebrate with you.  Thank you to all who participate.

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Design Wall Monday - December 8, 2025

Good Morning Quilters!

I’ve been working on the hourglass blocks for the “In The Round” quilt that I purchased recently at a quilt retreat.  It has been a great project for this busy time, as making hourglasses involves simple sewing along a penciled line - which is just what I need right now.

There are only two sets of hourglasses to finish and the others are all completed.  It will be fun to put this quilt up on the design wall, and see the color gradations appear.  Next week, I hope to be at that stage.  

Here is a picture of the stacks of hourglass blocks (two stack are half square triangles)

The picture from the pattern:

What are you working on this week?  Join our Design Wall Monday Linky Party below and show us.  Thanks for participating faithfully.  You are appreciated.

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Design Wall Monday - December 1, 2025

Good Morning Quilters!

Here is the view out my bedroom windows as I got up yesterday morning.  A blanket of snow on every branch and twig.  Glorious!!

I got my quilting mojo back while at retreat recently, and also did something that astounded me.  I bought a quilt kit from the sale table!  I have been resolutely working on finishing UFOs for the past year, but for some unexplained reason, I bought and have started a new project.  It is an entire quilt made up of hourglass blocks, and is different than my usual style of quilts.  I sometimes can’t explain my actions, but there it is…….I have started a new quilt.

Here is the pattern picture:

The quilt is named “In the Round” and is by Laura Berlinger.  Here are the first three sets of blocks, out of fourteen different sets:

I quite like the simplicity and calmness of this project.  Quite different than the Jane Stickle quilt triangles I’ve been working on.  But whatever the reason for my diversion to something new to me, I am enjoying quilting again.

What are you working on this week?  With this being the start of the busiest month of the year, and the recent snowstorms (8 inches here) quilting will be hard to fit into our busy lives.  But we will find some time……. I know we will.

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Design Wall Monday - November 24, 2025

 Good Morning Quilters!

I’m just back from attending a quilt retreat in Shipshewana, IL.  Here are two pictures of my part of the Friday night “Show and Tell” quilt show.

It made me so happy to see all the beautiful quilts that were in the show.  Here are two that I really liked.  I don’t have info on the patterns and makers, as I didn’t get that info during the show.  But these two wall hangings really pleased me.

Aren’t they stunning?  I am happy to report that this past week has my quilting enthusiasm brimming over again.  It was a wonderful week.

And soon it is Thanksgiving in America.  I wish you all a happy Thanksgiving holiday with your friends and family.  My contribution to a family gathering will be an apple pie and a pumpkin pie.   Also I will make the stuffing/dressing.  I feel very blessed by all of you and our weekly gatherings.  Thank you.

Link up below and show us what is happening in your week.  I noticed last week there was a glitch in the linkup, and linking was unavailable for part of the time.  But it is fixed now by Inlinkz, and should work as usual this week.  Happy Thanksgiving to you all! 

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Design Wall Monday - November 17, 2025

Good Morning Quilters!

Thanks for your input on the two log cabin quilts binding selection.  It was unanimously decided on the red print binding choice.  I have sewed it to the quilts and am taking them with me to a quilt retreat.  I plan to hand sew the bindings to the backs as I visit with friends there.

I wanted to use the same red print fabric on both the bed sized quilt and the matching doll quilt.  I cut all I had into 2 1/4 inch strips and joined them together.  After the big quilt binding was sewn on, I realized I didn’t have enough binding for the little quilt unless I cut the leftover strip down the middle, and used it as “single-fold” binding.  As it is a doll quilt, it won’t get the wear and usage of a big quilt, so the single fold binding will be just fine.  Have you ever used single-fold binding?

Here is a current picture:

I also bought some fake fur and finished the project of a Christmas stocking for my friend Lisa’s granddaughter.   The fake fur cuff finishes it off nicely.

Here’s the final picture of the stocking made from a baby’s first Christmas clothes:

Today I will gather my things together for the coming retreat.  I am so looking forward to this retreat.  I know I will get my quilting mojo back while I am in the presence of such great quilters.  

The greatest news that happened this week is that one of our grandson’s is now engaged.  We are so happy for the newly engaged couple!  We have eight grandchildren, ages 23 through 28, and only one is married.  

What is happening in your world this week?  Thanks so much for faithfully linking up to our Design Wall Monday Linky Party.  We so enjoy seeing your pictures and reading your blog posts.  

You are a blessing. 

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Design Wall Monday - November 10, 2025

Good Morning Quilters!

My Christmas stocking project for my friend Lisa’s grandbaby is almost finished.  I am going to buy some fake white “fur” for a cuff and then it will be finished.  I sewed the baby clothes pieces together, quilted it, sewed front and back together, made a white lining, put a sleigh bell in between the lining and the stocking (so the stocking will have a little jingle sound when it is picked up).  Here is a picture of the project so far:

Front:  (the lining is folded over the front a little bit - I will cut it off even with the stocking before I add the fur)

Here is the back:

I have two quilts back from the longarm quilter that need binding.  Since I am still in a funky no-quilting mojo mood, I can’t decide what color fabric to use to bind them.

What do you think?

Here are the log cabin quilts, the bed sized one, and the doll quilt that matches it….and two possible binding fabrics……or I could use something else.  I’m open to suggestions.

Here is a possible red print binding…….

And here is a possible neutral shirting binding……

And here are both possibilities on two sides of the little doll quilt…….

I could also use navy binding, but I’m kinda tired of navy, as I use it so often.  But I could if you think it would be best.  Thanks for giving me your opinions.

Also thank you so much for joining our Design Wall Monday Linky Party each week.  I think my quilting mojo is slowly returning because of you all!  You are a blessing.  

Link up below and show us your pictures and link us to your blogs.  

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Design Wall Monday - November 3, 2025

Good Morning Quilters!

This week I worked more on the baby Christmas stocking for a friend’s granddaughter.  My quilting mojo still hasn’t returned, but I did have some fun on this small project.

Here is one side of the stocking:

There are more pieces of the baby’s first Christmas outfits that are for the other side, and that will be next.  Then quilting the two sides.  I hope to have it finished by next week’s post.

The only other picture I want to show you is of a cutie.  He’s our Greatgrandson Bennett, and he just turned three years old.  

I sure hope my quilting mojo returns soon, because my projects and UFOs are waiting patiently for me.  Maybe when I get this Christmas stocking finished, it will return.

What are you showing us this Design Wall Monday?  How long has a temporary lull in your quilting lasted?  It is hard to believe that this Monday is the first Design Wall Monday Linky Party of November, but it is.  I am looking forward to reading your blogs and looking at your pictures.  Please link up below.  Thanks for participating.

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Design Wall Monday - October 27, 2025

Good Morning Quilters!

This is our front yard this week. We are at the peak of fall color, and enjoying every minute of it.  

We drove to East Lansing for the MSU vs U of M football game Saturday, and the view of the colorful trees on the trip was beautiful.  While riding in the car, I worked a little on this UFO of red work embroidery.  Most of the time I was looking out the window at the color show.   The red work will be a quilt of alphabet letters and winter snowmen and Christmas scenes.  This block has E for elf and F for fir trees.

The crocheted pumpkins are all stuffed and have their cinnamon stick stems.  I may make more - they make me happy.

This football game trip was a nostalgic one.  We’ve been going to MSU football games since 1965, and have decided to stop going to games in person next year.  At our age, (82 and 83) we will be watching games in future seasons from our living room.  Part of the issue is that now college football games are starting at different times than they used to.  For television coverage money, some games start in the evening.  The game Saturday started at 7:30 PM.  When we started going to games, the starting game time was usually noon or early afternoon.  

Here is a picture of some of MSU’s marching band, which sounds so good every game!  They are so dedicated.  We, for old times sake, went to the band practice field, and watched the band members get ready by sections, and then gather to march to the stadium.  We used to do this before every game, when my knees were much younger.

Here is a composite picture of us from various games over the years.

Some parts of getting older are sweet, and some parts are bittersweet.  

What has been happening in your life?  I hope some good quilty things.  I am still not in the quilt room much right now, but that always changes.  I shall be hit with quilt enthusiasm again.  It always happens.   

Please join our Design Wall Monday Linky Party below.  Your pictures and blog posts are inspiring to all of the rest of us.  Thank you for participating.  I appreciate you very much much.  

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Design Wall Monday - October 20, 2025

 Good Morning Quilters!

This week has been busy, as usual.  I didn’t get much work done on my quilting UFOs.  However, I did work on some crafty things.  Here are the little crocheted pumpkins that I was working on.  I used cinnamon sticks for the stems, and added a little curled part of a grapevine from my woods.  These will look cute as decorations from now through Thanksgiving.  The directions are free on the internet on several sites.

The second “non UFO” project I worked on this week:  I am making a Christmas stocking for a little girl.  Her Grandmother is a friend of mine and she brought over several of her cute baby clothes from her first Christmas (which was last year).  We cut out pieces from them and I stabilized them with a backing. 

We got as far as making a general plan on how the pieces will fit onto the stocking shape.  Next I will sew pieces together and make a patchwork stocking.for this Christmas.  Here’s one side:

I think this “a stocking from a baby’s first Christmas clothes” is a new fad, and I had not heard of it before now.  I see that it is popular on Etsy sales.   Here is the other side:

This last picture is a sample of what our trees look like around here.  I love fall.

Today is Design Wall Monday and our Linky party fun starts with your participation below.  Join us and show us your blog and your pictures.  Thank you all for your participation.

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Design Wall Monday - October 13, 2025

Good Morning Quilters! 

In the United States, Columbus Day is celebrated on the second Monday in October.    Although Indigenous People’s Day is not an official federal holiday, some states celebrate our Native American Indian culture on this day, and some states celebrate and honor both.  

As a retired lady, every day is similar to the day before and the day after.  I just have to remember that the banks and the post office are closed on a holiday.  My sewing machine is open and ready for business every day.  And for that I am thankful.  However I am observing my own kind of quilting holiday……………not much quilting was done this past week.  

I have lost my quilting mojo again.  The weather has been so beautiful, and all the sun shine, all the flowers outside, all the acorns crunching under my feet….these lovely things have kept me away from my quilting projects.  Please carry on without me until I recover.

Here is my design wall with no progress on blocks this past week:

There are nine blocks on each of the two borders left to make, so this is what I will be working on when my quilting mojo returns.

What are you working on?  Or not working on?  Please link up below and tell us all about it.  Our Design Wall Monday Linky Party is open to all quilters, whether you have a design wall or not.  We love to see your pictures and read your blogs.  Thank you for participating.

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Design Wall Monday - October 6, 2025

Good Morning Quilters!

Well, I’m home from vacation……but not very productive yet.  As I get older, I find my old body requires more maintenance.  This last Thursday, I had fatty tissue removed from my upper eyelids (so my eyeballs can see better).  Everything went successfully, but I am puffy and black and blue while I heal.  So now that I’ve had cataracts taken off, and the upper eyelids tightened up, I think I’m good to go in the eye department for a while.  

But while all of that necessary maintenance is great, I haven’t sewed all week.  So today, I will post one of my favorite fall quilts.  It is named “Third Weekend in October”.  The pattern is by Ruth Powers and looks harder than it really is.   I made it while I lived in Williamsburg, VA.

Here is the pattern picture from her website.  I am sorry to see it is no longer available.

Here are pictures of my quilt…..first a picture of the top on the floor, taken from the balcony of the cabin above it:

On the couch in Williamsburg, VA, showing the very orange back side:

Over the railing more recently in our house here in Michigan.

This quilt was my first attempt at free motion quilting, and it was fun to make “veins” in the leaves.   One leaf with quilting closeup:

Hopefully, next week I will be able to talk about a current quilt, or at least have pictures of current quilt blocks to show you. 

I know you have been more productive than I have been.  Please link up below to our Design Wall Monday Linky Party and show us.  Thank you all who participate.  I enjoy looking at your blog pictures and reading about your projects.  You are the best!

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Design Wall Monday - September 29, 2025

Good Morning Quilters!

Just back from vacation and am raring to go on assembly of my shirting and indigo Jane Stickle quilt.  

While on vacation I got to stop in at one of my absolute favorite quilt stores - Millstone Quilts - 8074 Flannigan Mill Road, Mechanicsville, VA.  They have great reproduction fabrics and I loved being in the shop.  If you are ever in the Richmond Va area, do stop in.   I was looking for a shirting fabric for the sashing of my Jane Stickle project, and walked into the first room of the shop - a room completely filled with bolts of shirting fabrics,  I was in heaven.

I used to live in Williamsburg, VA, and it was always a special treat when I could visit this shop, so my vacation visit was very special.

Here’s what I selected for the sashing for my project:

Now to start sashing the center blocks while I also work on the last triangles.  I am enthused and can’t wait.

What are you enthused about this week?  It is so much fun to read your blogs and look at your beautiful pictures,  Thank you for joining our Design Wall Monday Linky Party.  Click on the link below and let’s get sewing (and showing) this week!  I appreciate you.

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Design Wall Monday - September 22, 2025

Good Morning Quilters!

We are away from home, on vacation, and I don’t have much quilting to talk about.

I did bind a baby quilt (for a friend’s baby due in December), while traveling.  I’d show you a picture of it, but I’m in a motel this morning, and the baby quilt is out in the car.

I will try to update this post later in the day to add a picture.  (Imagine it until the picture appears.)

Update:  Here is Destiny with the new baby quilt and one of her beautiful daighters:

Also while traveling, I am crocheting some little pumpkin decorations for fall.  The yarn I bought is very thick and very orange.  It looks like a pile of Cheetos.  Here is my progress on the pumpkins:

The free directions are on the internet in many places.  Basically, you crochet a rectangle, join the short ends, and gather the bottom and top……(and stuff it).   The stem can be crocheted, or a cinnamon stick, or a regular stick from the woods.

I am so thankful for all our friends we are reuniting with while on vacation.  God is so good, and has blessed us with wonderful people all throughout our lives.  

What is happening where you are?  And what pictures do you have to share?

Just click on the link below and show us.  Our Design Wall Monday Linky Party is open to all.  Thank you so much for participating!  

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Design Wall Monday - September 15, 2025

Good Morning!

The weather here in Michigan has been spectacular this week, and I confess I’ve been doing anything but quilting lately.

I have only very small progress to report to you - two square within a square borders of four are sewn onto the medallian quilt.  

What occupied my time?  Prayer and reflection on how I can be a better mirror of God’s love to the people I know.  I am resolved to honor an assassinated Christian, Charlie Kirk, by speaking more boldly about my faith.  At only 31 years old, he has made such an impact for good on young people, and lots of us older people too.  I love God with all my heart and I vow to try to live God’s love to others.  I want only the best for all I interact with.

Thank you for your kindness to me within this blog and know that I appreciate all of you.  

I invite you all to join our Design Wall Monday Linky Party.  Click below and show us your creations and what you are working on.  You are an inspiration to me.

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