Jan's Patriotic Quilts

Almost halfway through October already! I swear every year passes faster than the last.  Jan recently sent in these 4 great red white and blue quilts for Covered in Love.

There are lots of veterans in the hospital, so patriotic quilts are always a big hit.  I'll be getting all the stars from the summer block drive done soon, but we always need more :)

I'm guessing Jan uses a high loft poly batting because these are light and very soft and fluffy.  They're generously sized and will be perfect for a family to take home.

These quilts came already finished, all I needed to do was add a label.  Thank you soooo much Jan! I'm continuously amazed by how quilters around the country and even around the world shower love onto one little Texas community.

PS - the kittens are doing great! This week they should start eating kitten milk and soft food without a bottle and learning to use the litter box.  I can't wait! Waking up every 4 hours to feed and potty is exhausting.

Covered in Love is a 501(c)(3) charity that donates quilts to patients dying in the hospital, over 300 so far! The Sept/Oct drive is a repeat of one of my old favorites, the grown-up eye-spy quilt.  Check out the main post HERE if you want to get involved.

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

It's a Small World

Hello, happy Friday! Things have been busy around here, sewing, work, and a special little surprise (see the end of the post).  Mina sent in four more of these cool village tops for Covered in Love and I quilted them. You can see the first one she sent here.

I found some more fun backing fabrics to match the brightly colored fronts.  Thanks to many donations I have a nice selection of backing fabric to choose from.

Lots of neat fabrics and little fussy cut surprises in these. A cowboy and Darth Vader appear in windows ;)

Testing out my new indoor rainy-day photo system today and I think it works pretty well. I need to get a few more lights and figure out how to make the quilt hang straighter.

I had a patient in her 90s the other day with a little mild dementia.  We ended up realizing she grew up in the same tiny town where I now live and we were able to talk about all kinds of people and places that she remembered.  It was fun to hear how different things were back then, but also how many things are the same.  It really is a small world, after all.

I promised you a "little" surprise. Well, these four babies joined me on Saturday the 22nd.  About 2-3 days old and lost by their mom during a Thunderstorm.  I've been staying home as much as possible since they'll require around the clock care for the first 3 weeks, so my sewing time has benefited, although my sleep has not! 

Covered in Love is a 501(c)(3) charity that donates quilts to patients dying in the hospital, over 300 so far! The Sept/Oct drive is a repeat of one of my old favorites, the grown-up eye-spy quilt.  Check out the main post HERE if you want to get involved.

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

String Quilts Part 2

It's time for another batch of string quilts from the Jan/Feb Covered in Love block drive!  You all sent in over 1000 string blocks and several quilters have been working with me to get them all turned into quilts.

Assembled and quilted by Tammy S.

Assembled and quilted by Tammy S.

First, 2 quilts assembled and finished by Tammy S., she's done 3 so far and her quilting is beautiful! I especially love the heart layout she chose for the pink blocks.

Blocks by Christy G., assembled and quilted by Kathy C.

These two quilts are made from shirtings blocks sent in by Christy G. and finished by Kathy C. I got a kick out of the fabric with the fish on it! Both got John Deere tractor fabric on the back, courtesy of Sandra.

Blocks by Christy G., assembled and quilted by Kathy C.

The quilt below was also assembled and quilted by Kathy C. from donated blocks with blue tones.

Assembled and quilted by Kathy C.

The quilt is made mostly from blocks donated by Pat. I added a few to round it out and them quilted it with a stipple.

Blocks by Pat O., assembled and quilted by me

 I found the perfect backing for this one in my stash of donated yardage.

The last two quilts were assembles and quilted by me from assorted donated blocks.

This one got a rainbow binding, which looks pretty cool! Nicki sent me a roll of prepped white binding and I dyed it in a rainbow gradient.

Last one, for now! These 8 plus 13 before make 21 string quilts so far; there are twelve to go (I think).   Thanks to everyone who is helping to make these quilts :)

Covered in Love is a 501(c)(3) charity that donates quilts to patients dying in the hospital, over 300 so far! The Sept/Oct drive is a repeat of one of my old favorites, the grown-up eye-spy quilt.  Check out the main post HERE if you want to get involved.

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

More UFOs Finished for the Cause

Happy weekend! Once again I've got a few tops sent in by others to be finished for Covered in Love.  Debbie S. sent in this Granny Square top and backing, didn't it make a pretty quilt?  

The binding on this one and the one below came from Holly M. thanks!

These next 2 tops came from Marianne, along with several others so I'll have more of her work to show in a few weeks.

The colors just scream Fall (which I'm assured will eventually get here this year... one day).

This coin stack quilt with the vintage fabrics is so cool.  I found several yellow fabrics from Sandra for backing.  Binding on this one from Nicki.  Thanks everybody! CiL is approaching 400 quilts soon and it's all thanks to you!

Covered in Love is a 501(c)(3) charity that donates quilts to patients dying in the hospital, over 300 so far! The Sept/Oct drive is a repeat of one of my old favorites, the grown-up eye-spy quilt.  Check out the main post HERE if you want to get involved.

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

Love for Jack's Basket

Jack's Basket is my new favorite charity! They provide gift baskets to families welcoming new babies with Down Syndrome.  Back in June some of you made little quilts to send to them. Elana sent me a top, backing, batting and binding to finish and I sent it in with one of mine.

I was so excited to see Elana's quilt had found its baby! See the quilt in the basket? What a gorgeous baby! It's nice to do some sewing from time to time that isn't for Covered in Love.

Elana's pretty, bright string quilt

I inherited a bolt of grey jersey a while back from my mom, intended for a project that never materialized.  I decided to combine it with my stash of fleece and minky remnants and make baby blankets.

I made 3 large blankets, about 40"x55", using the fleece blanket braided edge technique. 

And I made 10 smaller blankets about 36" square with raw edges. Since neither fleece or jersey ravel I just used a triple zigzag around the edge.

Having a new baby with Down Syndrome can be surprising, scary, and isolating. Jack's Basket delivers more than blankets, toys, and literature: they deliver hope.  Baskets, and more importantly, the volunteers who deliver them, assure families that they aren't alone, that their baby is beautiful, and that their baby has a bright future.

I've got a couple yards left on the bolt of jersey, so I plan to make some more blankets before too long, but for now I put these in the mail. 

Covered in Love is a 501(c)(3) charity that donates quilts to patients dying in the hospital, over 300 so far! The Sept/Oct drive is a repeat of one of my old favorites, the grown-up eye-spy quilt.  Check out the main post HERE if you want to get involved.

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

Quilting Inspectors on the Job

Free-to-Me Quilts

Top by Jannette, quilted by Meloney

It's time for another round up of the Covered in Love quilts where I didn't have to do a thing! First up two more tops from Jannette in Canada. These were sent to Meloney in South Texas for long arm quilting and she did an awesome job!

This scrappy disappearing nine patch got a loopy overall design.  The randomly scrappy quilts are some of my favorites because they look so casual and cozy.

Top by Jannette, quilted by Meloney

Then there's this flying geese top Jannette sent in as well. It's the opposite of scrappy, I think it's all the same fabric line.

Meloney did a beautiful swirly feather kind of thing on this one.

Pieced and quilted by Louise

Next up, two quilts from Louise.  A while back I sent her some donated fabrics to make quilts from and she's been sending them back steadily ever since.

  You can read Louise's blog post about these quilts here. Thank you, ladies!

Pieced and quilted by Louise

Covered in Love is a 501(c)(3) charity that donates quilts to patients dying in the hospital, over 300 so far! The Sept/Oct drive is a repeat of one of my old favorites, the grown-up eye-spy quilt.  Check out the main post HERE if you want to get involved.

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