Tu-Na Quilts: Three More Poodles Have Come to Play

I’ve been away from home enjoying family time at Pelican Lake in central Minnesota. When I returned home a day ago, our mailbox was stuffed. Needless to say there was a lot of commotion inside.

I rescued Marcel just in time as any longer in there and he would have bitten right through the envelope and escaped (it was half opened)!

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We could hear Marcel while we were driving up to the mailbox. It wasn’t hard to discover who was howling and singing the blues for being cooped up for so long; just look at his background fabric.

Marcel came all the way from England. He was made by Kate who blogs at Smiles from KateHe is indeed handsome and will work well with all the other pups who are starting to gather around here. Kate also included a charm of beautiful fabric that will work its way into some quilt project. Merci, Kate!

Sue from Australia, who blogs at Sevenoaks Street Quilts, made this adorable Ricky Doodle the Poodle block. Merci, Sue! I’m thinking of doing something special on this quilt with those names that my mates have given to their hard work. It will be subtle but readable.

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Ricky Doodle the Poodle must be a dog that minds his owner very well as he stayed put inside the envelope even though the taped end was completely open.

Janice from Idaho, who blogs at Color, Creating, and Quilting, made this delightful poodle. I don’t think this one has a name yet. I’m thinking this is a she poodle and needs a fancy French name. Any ideas?

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This playful pup was so busy inside the sturdy mailer playing with or guarding all the extra scraps that Janice sent along that she didn’t need to chew through it.

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The wine/burgundy pieces will be perfect for cornerstones for this quilt. There’s enough of the black and white ones not only for a 1.5″ square of each for my postage stamp quilt but also for furry accent pieces for more blocks. Merci, Janice!

I won’t be able to ask my other bee group to make these adorable little poodles for me as I had planned. The blocks exceed the cutting/sewing time limit of 1.5 hours for this group. As I look in my crystal ball, I see myself sitting and sewing many more of these but left facing. I suspect I’ll be chain piecing a pack of them so it’s good that I’ve worked the pattern down to doggie science.

I’ve finished putting all the construction tips for this poodle block on the Bee Inspired blog. I hope they were helpful for all my Bee mates and will be helpful for you if you want to make some of these darling poodles for your own. The free pattern for this right facing poodle is available here at The Objects of Design. Sally’s got other block tutorials on her blog, too, located in a tab on her header. If you haven’t visited her, do stop by and see what fabric adventures she and her furry helpers have been up to.

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Meet Cherise, my newest poodle that I made while writing the poodle block construction tips and Paris travel posts. This second block went together much easier and faster than the first one. I still encountered a problem but with some quick surgery and a few new words added to my vocabulary, she was good as new.

I started writing “What I Learned Today” years ago. I shared these Paris trip journal entries on those posts as well as some very interesting photos of sights we saw and food we ate. Here’s the links to all of those posts. You are welcome to stop by and read them.

Tu-Na Travels: Day One in Paris which includes Part un (1): Pattern and Fabric Selection.

Tu-Na Travels: Day Two in Paris and Poodle Block Cutting Tips which includes Part deux (2): Cutting and Anatomy Labeling.

Tu-Na Travels: Day Three in Paris and Prepping Those Furry Pieces which includes Part trois (3): Prepping the Furry Accent Pieces (Foot poofs, Tail, and Ear).

Tu-Na Travels: Day Four in Paris and Prepping the Poodle Body Parts which includes Part quatre (4) Prepping the Poodle Body Parts.

Tu-Na Travels: Day Five in Paris and Prepping the Background Pieces which includes Part Cinq (5) Prepping the Background Pieces.

Tu-Na Travels and Quilts: Day Six in Paris and Building the Frame Around Our Pampered Pooch which includes Part Six (6) Building the Frame Around Our Pampered Pooch.

Tu-Na Travels and Quilts: Day Seven in Paris and Finishing the Leftovers which includes Part Sept (7) Prepping the Last of the Extra Pieces.

Tu-Na Travels and Quilts: Day 8 in Paris and Assembling the Poodle which includes Part Huit (8) Some Assembly Required.

What I Learned Today:

  1. A week at the lake is exhausting.
  2. Coming home is nice.
  3. Coming home to a mailbox filled with fabric already sewn into blocks is even nicer. Thank you, Kate, Sue, and Janice!!! Your hard work and sewing skills are much appreciated. Merci.
  4. My newly college graduated son has been called back for a third interview. We might be empty nesters again.

Question: What’s your favorite vacation activity—skiing or boating or____? My favorite vacation activity is sitting around a campfire with family and toasting marshmallows, making popcorn, or pies. We never did get any pies made on the fire last week as we had so many marshmallows to use: square ones  (these are really a good idea), huge ones (too hard to eat but I gave it my best), regular size, and vegan ones (I never tried these).

Au Revoir,

Karen

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20 thoughts on “Tu-Na Quilts: Three More Poodles Have Come to Play

  1. karenfae

    very cute poodle blocks – our favorite vacation is camping in the mountains anywhere from the north in Montana to south in New Mexico – hiking/photography and sitting around the campfire does it for us

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  2. quiltgranny

    You know I’m certifiable when it comes to poodles…but I confess we have never shared our home with a female poodle….I always wanted one but somehow I always get banboozled and charmed by the boys. However I have two names at least on my list of possibilities should the puppy fairy come knocking on my door again. They are Vivienne and Yzabeau. I’d be happy if you wanted to use one of these names for one of the girls. Also Gidget is a cute name for a girl. Stop me now I could go on and on.

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  3. Kathleen McCormick

    Oh these poodle are to much, Karen! I am going to Pelican Lake in a few weeks. I always make a little trip to Mothers Quilt store, not the exact name. Glad you had a marvelous time and looking forward to my time there (husband went to HS in MN – and this is to see some friends from then).

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  4. rl2b2017

    Hi Karen,
    I’m glad you had fun at the lake, and these poodles are so fun. I enjoy reading these posts about them very much. I don’t have a name suggestion, but I kind of like Gidget – whatever makes your heart sing. I wonder how much pups the quilt needs? I love the black fabric Janice used with the bubbles on it – too darn cute. ~smile~ Roseanne

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  5. sue7oaks

    I’m so glad Ricky is well-trained – extra treats for him! Can’t wait to see it all come together. When I’m on holidays I love going for walks around the city or town I’m visiting, through the parks, along beaches and round lakes – you get the idea I’m sure! I never seem to have time for that in normal life.

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  6. Kathy Swallows

    Very fun poodle blocks! That’s going to be such a cute quilt. My favorite thing to do on vacation is try new restaurants and then hike to reduce the effect of all that good food on my waistline.

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  7. Preeti

    I am convinced that there are a few poodle blocks in my future, thanks to you. Coming home is really nice, I agree. The comfort of my own bed is the best part of returning home. On vacation, I’d love long nature walks, where we can stop to take in the views or watch birds.

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  8. thedarlingdogwood

    I love seeing all the poodles and hearing all the names! I am headed to a beach vacation tomorrow (!!!) and my favorite thing at the beach is walking on the beach. My favorite thing on mountain vacations is looking at the view, though I am a fan of hiking as well.

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  9. inquiringquilter

    Oh dear, I didn’t name mine either. I must be your only bee mate that completely lacks imagination! Anyway, they are lovely blocks and I hope my doggie is behaving! Thanks for linking up to Wednesday Wait Loss.

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  10. Lynette

    Love the poodles! That’s a great block. My favorite vacation activity is to sit with family/friends in front of any beautiful view and do a little hand stitching. 🙂

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