UFOs Finished for CiL

Kathy broke out of quarantine this week to return these quilts to me! She took the tops that various quilters sent in and finished them into beautiful, cuddly quilts for CiL.

These hand-pieced lonestars were sent in by Holly and I added the slim flower borders. It made such a sweet little quilt!

This quilt with the pretty, bright yellow and red flower fabrics came from Johanna.  I made a pieced backing from yellow and flower-themed fabrics to match.

This cute, almost vintage-looking nine patch top came from Julie W.  She donated a group of tops I posted about before here.

Karen made this quilt and I found flannel to back it with.  I thought it looked modern, but my mom thinks it looks vintage, so I guess it depends on your opinion ;)

Finally, this scrappy pineapple beaut was pieced by Pam.

It has so much movement and life!

Thank you ladies who contributed the tops, as well as the backing and binding that went into these quilts. And thanks to the several of you who have contacted me about volunteering to help assemble and quilt for CiL-- It really helps to keep us moving forward!

A mother vulture is raising chicks in a courtyard at the hospital. They are getting their big feathers now.

Covered in Love's usual every-two-month block drive is on hiatus for the months of May-June. You can see a post here with talking about it and some suggested ways to fill the CiL sized hole in your month!

Linking to Confessions of a Fabric Addict and Finished or Not Friday.

Everything in its place

No finishes unfortunately this week. I did make a couple of blocks for my do. Good Stitches circle and a few masks.

Meanwhile, I thought you might like to see the CiL master storage center.  This is where blocks go in and quilts, eventually, come out.

I've been putting together tops from the Nov/Dec blocks, nearly done with those.  The kitties have been my faithful assistants.

Sundae doesn't like her new box very much yet. I haven't packed it full enough for her to see over the top comfortably.

Linking to Finished or Not Friday.

A little reminder...

Jan/Feb string blocks quilt sent in by Tammy S

I got a nice reminder of why we do what we do a last week in the form of an email from a recipient's family member. She graciously gave me permission to share part of her letter with you.

A.'s mom received a very sudden and unexpected cancer diagnosis and died just 11 days after getting the news, 9 of those days spent in the hospital under lockdown with only one family member able to visit.

Village quilt sent in by Mina

A. sent me a kind email to ask for information so donations could be made to Covered in Love in lieu of flowers. She said,
"Your quilt was a very special gift, as my mom’s mother and grandmother were both quilters, however my mom had eye trouble and was unable to quilt much herself. She was so happy to receive your quilt, as it felt like a reminder of her mom. It was the highlight of a very difficult day."

She said that because only one family member was able to be with her, the quilt which reminded her of family was especially helpful.

They received this quilt from made by Karen & Karen, as usual it's a team effort. When COVID began we had to think through how we deliver and distribute quilts, but knew it would be more important than ever to continue. Thanks to everyone who helps out with CiL to support and shower love on these families, now more than ever.

Covered in Love's usual every-two-month block drive is on hiatus for the months of May-June. You can see a post here with talking about it and some suggested ways to fill the CiL sized hole in your month!

Linking to Confessions of a Fabric Addict and Finished or Not Friday.

May-June CiL {Split 9 Patch Round 2}

Hello quilters! Sorry I mixed up my days last week and left you all high and dry on the plan for May-June.  I'll talk about it in this post while you enjoy the pictures from the Split 9 Patch Drive wrap up.  The top 5 quilts on this page were assembled and quilted by me. In total this drive made 14 quilts!

Traditionally (for the past 3 years I think) Covered in Love has taken a break from block drives this time of year. This isn't so much to give you a break as to give me a chance to catch up on the blocks and tops here. (Not that I ever catch up, but I do try to keep from falling any further behind.)

I know that due to COVID this year many people, including me, have had more time at home than usual and you're eager to continue sewing. However, I'm going to need these 2 months off to try to balance the tables a little between the blocks you send in and the blocks currently on my shelves.

To fill the Covered in Love shaped hole in your sewing schedule these next 2 months here's what I would recommend:

• Contribute to Jack's Basket (a baby quilt only take (9) 12.5" blocks from one of our block drives), or one of the organizations in this year's Hands2Help drive, or a local cause
• Make masks or surgical hats for folks in your area
• Start making red, white, and blue star blocks for the July-August drive
• Or....

If any particularly intrepid folks would like to volunteer to assemble and/or quilt blocks from previous CiL drives I can ship you the blocks, backing and binding, pay for batting if necessary, and pay return shipping. Kathy, Tammy, Mel, and Nancy have helped for years and I'm looking for a few more good (women).

Now, this is a big commitment. Time, up to several months, isn't really an issue but I must have your assurance that the blocks will kept safe and if anything stops you from finishing you'll return them (no questions asked).  I feel that you all place a great deal of trust in me when you send in your blocks, that I will make sure they are used well, and I have to pass that trust along to other volunteers.

That being said, if you want to use your May-June down time quilting for the cause (or want to ask me more questions about it) please drop an email to CoveredinLoveTx@gmail.com!

Speaking of volunteers, this quilt was assembled by Nancy from the central Texas area. She added the border and sashing and her friend Jenn then long-arm quilted it.

If there are any long-armers who would like to help but can't offer free services, send me an email.  Thanks to generous donations we are able to pay some to help offset the costs of professionals who donate their services. 

This would be the last post for these split nine quilts, with a total of 14.  (You can see the post with the first 8 quilts here.)  But, I happen to know that one of the unopened boxes on my floor contains 5 more tops from Gail. So you can expect a bonus post, probably in a few months!

Fudge helping me model one of my new masks for the hospital

Y'all stay safe out there!

Linking to Confessions of a Fabric Addict and Finished or Not Friday.

What day is it?

Sorry about no finish post today. I lost track of the days of the week. (I know I'm not the only one to have that happen to them lately.) I'll be back next week, hopefully on schedule :-)

In the meantime go check out the post Louise just made with some Covered in Love orphan block quilts she has finished.

Take care!

During quarantine Fudge has trained me to follow him around with the leash so he can explore the wider world.