Tu-Na Quilts: On the Fourth Day of Christmas, My True Love Gave to Me…

Yes, he gave me a red rose which he picked from the flower bed.

Welcome to the fourth day of the 12 Days of Christmas in July Blog Hop.

You will find links to all the participating blogs at the very end of my post after the question. Thank you, Sarah, for coordinating this event. You might like to visit her blog, Confessions of a Fabric Addict, each day for her Christmas Quilt Along as well as enter daily to win prizes. Yes, there’s a giveaway going on with 12 daily and one grand prize. To enter, you must comment on each participating blog on their 12 Days of Christmas in July post AND also on Sarah’s blog. You have through July 26th to get all your reading and commenting finished. The list of participating blogs is at the end of my post.

Every year, Christmas sneaks up on me so I thought I’d get an early start this year. I have several ideas to share with you today. First, I’ll show you how I sewed this stocking which can be a fun gift for someone on your list or for a favor at your quilting guild.

The stocking is now filled with some fun but useful surprises which every sewist would like to have. Check back on Wednesday the 19th, Friday the 21st, Sunday the 23rd, and Tuesday the 25th as I reveal a new stocking stuffer and show you how to make them, too. To make sure you don’t miss out on any of that fun or any of the other things happening in my little quilting corner of the world, just follow my blog (check my sidebar to find buttons to follow by email, WordPress, or Bloglovin).

Next, I will also share with you this fun Christmas wreath project that I enlisted the help of some of my grandchildren while we were at the lake over the 4th of July.

Finally, I’m also including some helpful hints when working with children.

Part One: Let’s Make an Easy Mini Quilted Christmas Stocking

What you will need:

one fat quarter of fabric (after cutting out your stocking using the pattern, cut out a 4″ square for the heel, a 2.5″ x 4″ strip for the toe, and a 6″ x 10″ strip for the cuff) These can all be the same fabrics or other fabrics if you want the scrappy look.
fabric strips in a variety of widths 1″- 2″ wide and at least 7 inches long that have straight edges. You will need one 3″ x 5.5″ strip that goes from the heel piece to the right edge. You will need one 2.5″ x 6″ strip for the loop.
one 10″ x 12″ piece of batting
fabric basting spray or fabric glue or pins
trim for the cuff, optional (pom poms, ric rac, etc.)
free stocking pattern that I drew and can be downloaded as a pdf and printed from here stocking pattern

Directions:

Cut out the paper pattern pieces matching the As and the Bs. For pattern accuracy, cut along the inside of the black line. Tape the top of the stocking onto the bottom piece.

Take note of where the black dots are for heel placement.

Placing the right side of the pattern onto the wrong side of the fabric, cut out the stocking. This will be the backing for the top and also becomes the inside of the stocking. Cut out another one for the back of the stocking. You need both to be facing that same direction and cut from the wrong side of the fabric.

You will need to do this two times each this same way.

Placing the right side of the pattern onto the batting fabric, cut out the stocking shape.

Spray baste the batting onto the wrong side of the backing. You could use fabric glue in a couple of places around each edge if you’d rather. Another alternative is to pin baste the pieces together, taking care to remove the pins BEFORE you sew the strips over them.

Place the 4″ heel square of fabric right side up on the batting matching the dots. Either spray, glue, or pin in place.

With right sides together, position a 3″ strip of fabric on the right side of the heel fabric at an angle. This will cover the stocking area from the heel to the right side of the stocking.

Sew 1/4″. Trim if needed, Flip and press lightly but don’t press the batting directly as I found mine would shrink a lot.

I’ve sized the pieces large so you will have some trimming to do.

Start adding strips beneath the heel piece. Sew 1/4″. Trim if needed. Flip and press.

When laying the first strip down, put it at the angle you want it to be making sure you catch all the fabric below it in the seam allowance.

Keep doing this until you get about 1.5-2″ from the edge of toe.

Add the toe piece.

Continue adding rows above the heel all the way to the top. Adjust the angles of the strips if needed. The top strip doesn’t have to align with the fabric on its underside. Just make sure you are catching the lower fabric in the seam allowance. Trim seam, press, flip, and continue all the way to the top.

You can change the angle.

Continue all the way to the top

Turn over stocking and use the backing as a guide to trim the front pieces.

Turn it over and follow the backing as a guide

Now it looks like a stocking

With right sides together, pin back onto quilted front.

Sew 1/2″ all along the sides and bottom but NOT the top edge. Zig zag raw edges or use a serger to join the pieces. Clip the two inner curves.

Clip the two inner curves as noted on the pattern. Clip close to the seam but not too close.

Turn right side out rounding out the heel and toes parts with your hand or blunt object.

There it is all turned right side out. Look how it puffs up just waiting to be filled with goodies!

The Hanging Loop:

Fold the 2.5″ x 6″ piece in half lengthwise and press. Unfold and take each side and fold it to meet the middle crease. Press the outside edges.

Now bring both halves together and press. After pressing, sew close to the edge.

Fold loop in half and stitch across raw ends to secure them in place. This is tricky and they want to stray, just take it slow and it will go.

I find adding this little row of stitching just above those raw edges on the ends really helps keep the loop aligned as I do the next step.

Pin or glue baste the loop in place at the top inside of the stocking next to the left side seam on the back making the raw edges meet. The loop should be pointing down inside the stocking. Secure with a line or two of stitching about 1/4″ from the edge.

Cuff:

Fold the cuff in half with the short edges together and stitch a 1/2″ seam.

Press seam to side and fold in half with wrong sides together to form a circle. Press so cuff seam is in the middle of the back.

Pin cuff inside the stocking matching the top edge. The pressed cuff seams will match with the stocking seams.

Sew a 1/2″ seam and zig zag or serge. Turn cuff right side out.

Add some trim if you like. Pom poms would be nice. I sewed ric rac along the bottom edge. I’ve always liked ric rac. Do you?

Isn’t it cute!

This stocking is 7.5″ wide and 9″ long with a 4.5″ opening.

This stocking is stuffed! Come back on Wednesday, as I begin to reveal the first of many surprises it holds.

Part Two: So the Kids Want to Make Something, too!

Child’s Project: Ring Wreath

Here’s the one I made. Well, I am young at heart. Does that count?

What you will need:

Metal canning jar rings (I used the regular size)

Since these were rusty

my husband spray painted them.

Since my jar rings were rather rusty, my husband spray painted them ahead of time for me. He was being a very helpful Tu-Na helper.
Fabric cut into 3/4″ x 6″ strips (I used 30 for my ring but the kids used less.)
Although I brought my rotary cutter and a small mat along to the lake, I forgot the ruler. It was then impossible for me to cut them into straight strips, so I just eyeballed them and cut them with a scissors.

• One fabric string cut 1/4″ x 16″ for the hanging loop or you could use twine, string, yarn, or jute.

Directions:

Show your little ones how to tie a fabric strip around the ring and pull it tight. Keep adding strips, pushing them tightly against the previously tied one.

Here’s my 8 year old grandson working on his.

After about 1/4 done around the ring, he was ready for a break.

My two year old grandson picked out the reindeer strips and handed them to me to tie.

The little ones also just wrapped the strips around the rings. But that’s ok, they had fun and later their mommies finished the rings for themselves.

Sometimes they were worn as arm bands.

When the ring is filled, push aside a couple of ties so you can tie the 1/4″ x 16″ strip (or string) around the ring for the hanging loop.

Then add a second knot further up creating the loop.

“Ah, mommy, yours is so nice.”

“But I think I like it better as an arm band. Hey, mom, look at my new fit bit.”

Part Three: How You and Your Children Can Enjoy Making Crafts Together:

Make sure your project is appropriate for the age of your child. If it’s too difficult they may become frustrated. If it’s too easy they may lose interest.
Break up the process into small sessions. Young children lose attention quickly. Let them come back to work on the project later.
Don’t expect perfection.
Show how but don’t take over. It may look very different from what you imagined.
If the project is a bit too hard, think of things your child can do to help you.
Be encouraging and offer praise.
Most of all, have fun together.

What I Learned Today:

It doesn’t matter if Christmas comes in December or July, it still catches me by surprise.
Having a summer cold is miserable. I am on week three. Maybe it’s time to visit the doctor.

Question: What gifts do you want to sew this year? I’ve got to sew an apron for sure. My mother-in-law has been asking for one for a couple of years.

Here are the blogs participating in the 12 Days of Christmas in July blog hop!

Friday, July 14th, 2017

The 12 Days of Christmas in July Has Arrived—Day One

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

From My Carolina Home

Vrooman’s Quilts

Pampered Pettit

Saturday, July 15th

We Need a Little Christmas—Day Two

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Citymousequilter

Vicki’s Crafts and Quilting

Quilting Fun

Sunday, July 16th

Go Tell It on the Mountain—Day Three

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Swimming in a Sea of Estrogen

Everyone Deserves a Quilt

Cheryl’s Teapots2Quilting

Monday, July 17th

Deck the Halls–It’s Day Four of the 12 Days of Christmas in July Blog Hop

Confessions of a Fabric Addict Sarah gives us another sewing assignment just like the others. She’s found some great looking origami ornaments to show us and we can make them too.

Tu-Na Quilts, Travels, and Eats (Thanks for visiting me on the hop.)

Pieceful Thoughts of My Quilting Life Wendy adds a colorful touch to the holidays by showing how to color some holiday cheer with the children. You’ll be running for your box of crayons after reading this.

Crayon Box Quilt Studio Michele made a Christmas quilt. She shows how using charms, half charms, and sashing can make a beautiful quilt for anytime of the year. Look closely at the pics to see some design inspiration in her quilting.

Tuesday, July 18th

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Seams To Be Sew

Stitchin at Home

Domestic Felicity

Wednesday, July 19th

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

The Colorful Fabriholic

Smiles From Kate

Thursday, July 20th

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Cheryl’s Teapots2Quilting

The Inquiring Quilter

Selina Quilts

Friday, July 21st

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Katie Mae Quilts

Quilted Blooms

QuiltFabrication

Saturday, July 22nd

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Devoted Quilter

Kathy’s Kwilts and More

All Points of the Compass

Sunday, July 23rd

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Mel’s Quilting Blog

Resourceful Momma

Cheryl’s Teapots2Quilting

Monday, July 24th

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Anja Quilts

PickingandStitching

A Dream and a Stitch

Tuesday, July 25th

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Christina’s Handicrafts

Abyquilts

Thanks for stopping by and do come again.

Karen, Tu-Na Quilts

Linking to

Main Crush Monday at Cooking Up Quilts
Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt
Moving it Forward Monday at Em’s Scrapbag
Oh, Scrap at Quilting is More Fun than Housework
Linky Tuesday at Freemotion on the River
Let’s Bee Social at Sew Fresh Quilts
Wait Loss Wednesday at The Inquiring Quilter
Midweek Makers at Quilt Fabrication
TGIFF
Finished or Not Friday at Busy Hands Quilt
Show Off Saturday at Sew Can She

Tu-Na Quilts: Go Tell It On the Mountain–Day Three of 12 Days of Christmas in July Blog Hop

25 Replies

This year’s hop started July 14, 2017 and will continue through July 25, 2017. Participating bloggers are posting gift and Christmas ideas.

Santa’s little helpers for today can be found at:

Sunday, July 16th, 2017

Confessions of a Fabric Addict Sarah gives us our sewing assignment for Santa’s Trip Around the World quilt and also shows some great decorating and gift ideas that you could make for someone on your list. Are you sewing along? I’ll show my pics soon.

Swimming in a Sea of Estrogen Amy won’t be burning her fingers this year when she pulls hot bowls out of the microwave. If you’ve been wanting to make yourself or someone on your Christmas list some microwave bowl cozies or if you have no idea what these are, you’ll want to hop right on over to her blog to see how really easy and fast these are to stitch.

Everyone Deserves a Quilt Do you set up a Christmas tree? Joanne’s got you covered if you do. Well, your tree that is. She has a tutorial for a tree skirt that looks mighty festive. You might want to check it out.

Cheryl’s Teapots2Quilting If you haven’t found anything to make for those on your list yet, don’t worry, Cheryl’s posting lots of ideas with more to follow. She’s also giving away three mini kits so you might like to leave a comment on her blog if you want to win one and really get a jump on your holiday making.

Remember to leave comments on each of their posts so you can qualify to win some fabric giveaways of Tula Pink’s new holiday line, Holiday Homies, generously donated by Free Spirit Fabrics!!! You have until July 26th to comment on each blog.

See my post here for a complete listing of all participating blogs on the hop.

What I Learned Today:

There’s no place like home. Even my junk doesn’t want to leave. (I’m cleaning out my storage room and garage.)
It’s hard to let go of things I’ve had for many years.
I’m very sentimental.

Question: What do you make/bake for Christmas goodies? I used to make lots of different kinds of cookies and candy which is one of the reasons I am once again on a mission to lose weight. Now, I’m lucky if I get our Traditional Painted Cookies, Reindeer Cookies, and maybe some gingerbread men made for the grandkids.

Thanks for stopping by and do come again.

Karen, Tu-Na Quilts

Tu-Na Quilts: We Need a Little Christmas–Day Two of the 12 Days in Christmas in July Blog Hop

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This year’s hop is hosted by Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict.

Today’s merry elves can be found here:

Saturday, July 15th, 2017

Confessions of a Fabric Addict Sarah continues giving instructions for her quilt along with this quilt. Yesterday, we chose our fabric and cut strips. Today, we’ll be doing some sewing of long strips. It’s not too late to get started.

cfa

Citymousequilter Grace won’t be left without a sock—to hang on the mantel at Christmas time that is. See how she constructs a string-pieced stocking both with and without a cuff.

Vicki’s Crafts and Quilting Vicki shows a new pattern she just released on the Craftsy site. If you want to make a fun table runner with snowmen dudes, check out her blog. She has a link to the pattern. It sure looks like fun!

Quilting Fun Pam makes a quilt and gives a couple good tips (what she uses to make a circle and how she does the center of the circle) as she quilts a circular pattern around her quilt. I thank you for them!

Remember to leave comments on each of their posts so you can qualify to win some giveaways of fabric of Tula Pink’s new holiday line, Holiday Homies!!!

giveaway

See my post here for a complete listing of all the blogs on the hop.

What I Learned Today:

If at first I don’t succeed, try again, and again, and again.
Persistence paid off, I succeeded. You’ll see later.
July is almost half over. Yikes, there’s so much to do before the month ends. We are in a major clean-out of our storage room and garage.
I am already behind with this quilt along and it’s only day 2.
Thirteen days until the 2017 Quilt Minnesota Shop Hop begins. Will Tu-Na and Tu-Na helper go this year or sit this one out?

Question: What is your favorite Christmas tune? Mine is “It Came Upon a Midnight Clear.”

Tu-Na Quilts: Christmas in July Has Arrived-Day One

3 Replies

This year’s blog hop is hosted by Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict.

Today’s participants can be found here and they are offering:

Friday, July 14th

Confessions of a Fabric Addict (she posts at 12:01 AM Central time) Sarah will be offering a quilt-along during these 12 days. Her post gives fabric requirements and cutting instructions. I hope you will join along as we sew our way through the rest of July. If you can’t participate now, remember this quick, easy tutorial when you need a quilt pieced NOW.

From My Carolina Home Carole makes sewing a zippered bag look easy. She offers the free tutorial and gives directions and pictures. Take it one step at a time and you’ll soon have one (maybe more if you can’t stop making these) gift made for someone on your list.

Vrooman’s Quilts If you have kids or grandkids, you might like to see these ornaments out of CDs that the kids can make. Jump start the little ones creativity, today!

Pampered Pettit Are your pillows looking tired and worn? Breathe new life into them with Brandy’s quick pillow sham/covering tutorial. You could also make new covers for your existing pillows in pretty holiday fabrics and add some holiday cheer to your sofa/couch.

Remember to comment on each of the blogs above to qualify for some big fabric giveaways. If you need more info about the giveaways, see my post here.

What I Learned Today:

“A good joke beats a pill for a lot of ailments.” Emery Styron (as quoted in an old Ann Landers column I found while cleaning off my desk)
If I need to get something done, don’t expect someone else to do it especially when no one else is around.
My son is very helpful. It will be sad to see him move out. No job offer yet but there is hope.
Writing a post takes up a lot of time that I could be using finishing up my projects. I am not sure I will post every day, but I thought I’d at least get this hop started out and let you know the variety of things being offered.

Question: If Christmas really came in July, how different would your celebration be?

Thanks for stopping by and do come again.

Karen, Tu-Na Quilts

Tu-Na Quilts: Sounds are Being Heard up on the Rooftop-The 12 Days of Christmas in July Blog Hop Starts Tomorrow!

15 Replies

I thought you might like to know that it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas in my sewing room. And for good reason! Tomorrow starts the 12 Days of Christmas in July Blog Hop hosted by Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict.

I’m scheduled to post on Monday the 17th. (If you are popping in now, you can see my post here.) But I won’t let the fun stop there. Oh, Tu-Na has been hard at work and what I have to show you takes more than one day.

See my post schedule below. Join me here on:

Monday, July 17, 2017 for Tu-Na Quilts: On the Fourth Day of Christmas, My True Love Gave to Me… I will show two of the Christmas projects that I’ve prepared for this event but I am not revealing everything. Christmas is all about the anticipation of surprises ahead!
Wednesday, July 19th, 2017 for Tu-Na Quilts: The First Reveal—What’s Inside the Stocking?
Friday, July 21st, 2017 for Tu-Na Quilts: The Second Reveal—You Mean There’s More?
Sunday, July 23rd, 2017 for Tu-Na Quilts: The Third Reveal—How Much Can It Hold?
Tuesday, July 25th, 2017 for Tu-Na Quilts: The Fourth and Final Reveal—Does The Fun Have to End?

With so much Christmas magic happening can it get any better? Oh, yes, it can! There will be a giveaway for each day of the hop. You can enter by commenting on the assigned blogs for that day (check the list below) AND on Sarah’s daily blog post at Confessions of a Fabric Addict. You have until July 26th to leave all your comments. Everyone is welcome to enter no matter how far away or near you live. (This giveaway is open world-wide).

And as if great holiday ideas and tutorials weren’t enough, this year we’ve got something extra special! The lovely folks over at Free Spirit Fabrics have donated not just one item for a giveaway, but THIRTEEN! Thirteen prizes from Tula Pink’s new holiday line, Holiday Homies!!!

Sarah has six design rolls, six layer cakes, and one fat quarter bundle to give away– and here’s how she’s going to do it! You will need to visit each stop on the hop, including hers, and leave a comment on each post for the day.

For example: Comments left on my blog on the 17th, which is my assigned day, will qualify you for this giveaway as long as you also comment on Sarah’s blog Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Pieceful Thoughts of My Quilting Life, and Crayon Box Quilt Studio blogs. That allows you to be entered for the giveaway for that day. You can do this for each day and increase your chance of winning some delightful Christmas fabric to get you started making surprises for people on your list. Just remember, you have until July 26th to read and comment on all the blog posts for this event. (Sorry, but commenting on my posts on the 19th, 21st, 23rd, and 25th won’t help you earn your way to this prize but I appreciate your doing it anyway.)

On July 27th, Sarah will put everyone’s name in the hat who commented on a particular day (from all that day’s hop-blogs) and draw a winner for that day. That will be twelve winners – the design rolls and layer cakes. Then she will put all the names from all the days in a hat and draw out a grand prize winner for the fat quarter bundle! Sorry, only one prize per person.

Here’s the list of participants. I’ve added Sarah’s blog link to each day for your convenience and so you won’t forget to stop by her place. too. Oh, and when you do, say hi and tell her that Tu-Na sent you.

Friday, July 14th

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

From My Carolina Home

Vrooman’s Quilts

Pampered Pettit

Saturday, July 15th

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Citymousequilter

Vicki’s Crafts and Quilting

Quilting Fun

Sunday, July 16th

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Swimming in a Sea of Estrogen

Everyone Deserves a Quilt

Cheryl’s Teapots2Quilting

Monday, July 17th

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Tu-Na Quilts, Travels, and Eats

Pieceful Thoughts of My Quilting Life

Crayon Box Quilt Studio

Tuesday, July 18th

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Seams To Be Sew

Stitchin at Home

Domestic Felicity

Wednesday, July 19th

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

The Colorful Fabriholic

Smiles From Kate

Thursday, July 20th

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Cheryl’s Teapots2Quilting

The Inquiring Quilter

Selina Quilts

Friday, July 21st

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Katie Mae Quilts

Quilted Blooms

QuiltFabrication

Saturday, July 22nd

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Devoted Quilter

Kathy’s Kwilts and More

All Points of the Compass

Sunday, July 23rd

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Mel’s Quilting Blog

Resourceful Momma

Cheryl’s Teapots2Quilting

Monday, July 24th

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Anja Quilts

PickingandStitching

A Dream and a Stitch

Tuesday, July 25th

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Christina’s Handicrafts

Abyquilts

Are you excited yet?

What I Learned Today:

It takes a lot of time and work to prepare for Christmas, even in July.
An attitude of gratefulness is a good character trait to have. Thank you, Sarah, for organizing this event so that we can get ideas and inspiration to make things for our friends and family on our Christmas list.
“Persistence will get you almost anything eventually.” Emery Styron (as quoted in an old Ann Landers column I found while cleaning off my desk).
Thoughts of Christmas, even in July, evoke memories of family, foods, and fun.

Question: What do you want for Christmas? I’ve told my husband that all I want for Christmas is some fabric covering a longarm quilting machine. I’m more likely to get a sweater to cover my arms.

Merry Christmas in July,

Thanks for stopping by and do come again.

Karen of Tu-Na Quilts, Travels, and Eats

Linking to:

Midweek Makers
Finished or Not Friday
Can I Get a Whoop Whoop?

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

20 Replies

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)!

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 Kate. He 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.

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?

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.

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.

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:

A week at the lake is exhausting.
Coming home is nice.
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.
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

Linking to:

Tu-Na Quilts: More Poodles Came to Play

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I’m still posting Poodle Block tips over on Bee Inspired. It’s my month to be Queen Bee and I’ve been having some fun going down memory lane with the poodle block I chose to have my hive mates make.

Tu-Na Travels and Quilts: Day 7 in Paris and Finishing the Leftovers just published on the Bee Inspired blog here. You are invited to come and check it out. These tips might be helpful if you want to make some of those adorable right facing poodles that Sally from The Objects of Design designed which is available here.

In the meantime, my knight in shining armor, ok. maybe not the one pictured below,

: One of the many suits of armor we saw in Paris.

but my husband, came in from the mailbox a couple of days ago saying, “Woof, woof, woof, woof.” I guess that meant there was mail for me.

These delightful poodles came all the way from Velda who lives in Canada and blogs at Granny Can Quilt.

: Here’s Odie. He is a star. These fabrics are gorgeous.

Here’s her real Odie showing you his ability to fit in with his human family by sitting all proper on the couch. He only got to roam around Velda’s house for two years before heading to doggie heaven but he will remain a star in her heart forever. This picture was taken by Granny Can Quilt and used with permission.

This one is called Tigg and is modeled after one of Velda’s poodles who now lives with her. Don’t you just love that background text fabric?

Here’s Tigg in real life. Look at that pose!! He is a handsome fella and is the senior poodle at Velda’s house. This picture was taken by Granny Can Quilt and used with permission.

The guys came bearing gifts.

: Tigg is bringing in some 1.5″ strips for me to use in my postage stamp quilt. Odie is carrying a piece for the cornerstone for this poodle quilt.

Thanks, Velda!! These poodles are gorgeous and I will definitely make use of the strips. Your hard work is much appreciated!

What I Learned Today:

Belonging to an online quilting bee is a lot of fun especially this month.
I’m looking forward to the mail tomorrow.
I’ve only got 5 days to get my Stash Bee block finished and in the mail! It’s a red, white, and blue string block. It should be fun but I am so busy this week since my sister is coming to town and we’ve got at least one quilting day planned and a girls day out.

Question: If you were in a bee, what block would you choose?

Linking to Main Crush Monday, Monday Making, Moving It Forward, Katie Mae Quilts BOMS Away. Linky Tuesday at Freemotion by the River,

Tu-Na Quilts: A Poodle Came to Play

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I thought I’d write a quick post to let you all see that I now have a lovely little poodle to play with. Well, actually, Jennifer from The Inquiring Quilter, made me this block for my Bee Month and it arrived on Thursday. She also included three 1.5″ squares of the fabrics she used so I could include them in my postage stamp quilt. Thanks, Jennifer!

Made by Jennifer at The Inquiring Quilter.

I’ve been busy writing about my trip to Paris and posting construction tips on what’s turning into being a block sew-along this month over at Bee Inspired. I was in Paris three years ago and had already started writing “What I learned today” posts in my journal. I’m including them to give you my impressions (and sometimes humorous insights) of Paris and the things my husband and I saw, did, and ate. Each post also includes some detailed poodle making tips.

Here’s the poodle parts all prepped. Labeling makes this project so much easier.

You are all welcome to stop by and read about my Paris adventures and even sew up a poodle or two or more for yourself. The free pattern is found on The Objects of Design.

Here’s my latest post on Bee Inspired which also includes links to all the Paris and poodle posts. Tu-Na Quilts: Day Four in Paris and Prepping the Poodle Body Parts.

I still have a few more Paris posts left to write as there are still a few parts left before our pampered pooches go parading.

What I Learned Today:

I can “knock out” a post in less than 15 minutes.

Question: Are you a dog or cat person? To me dogs are he’s and cats are she’s except for these poodles; some definitely have he looks and some have she looks.

Linking to: Em’s Scrapbag for Moving It Forward, Monday Making, Katie Mae Quilts BOMs Away, and Main Crush Monday. Design Wall Monday, Tips and Tutorials Tuesday, Linky Tuesday on Freemotion by the River, Wednesday Wait Loss, Can I Get A Whoop Whoop, Finished or Not Friday.

Tu-Na Quilts: Progress on “She Has Her Mommy’s Nose”

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Yes, there is hope that I will finish this little quilt soon. I renamed the quilt in this post. I’ve got a ton of different projects going all at once, some secret sewing and some with deadlines, but I am making some headway with this one. I’ve sewn all the blocks into rows.

Now just to press the seams, sew the rows together, quilt, and bind. That may sound like a lot but really it’s all down hill from here, at least for me. I’ve already got a quilting motif in mind which is more than half the battle to finishing at this point.

But I do need your help. As I am getting closer to a finish for this sweet quilt, I am thinking ahead and want to select just the right binding for it. I originally bought this peach for the binding but now I am not sure.

Possibility A

Here’s an idea

of how this one might look

But then I started leaning towards the greenish teal.

Possibility B (the coloring is more like the pic above than the one below)

This is how the teal

could look.

And now I think it could use just a tish of color. I remember how Tish of Tish in Wonderland likes to bind her quilts with a flange. I think you can see that hint of color around the edge best on her many quilts in this post.

Possibility C

Here’s how a flange binding

would look using both these colors.

I really appreciated all of your comments (see this post) when helping me to decide on the size of this quilt. I was really torn about what to do so I asked the new mommy for her opinion and she said to keep it as is which will be a nice crib-size or toddler bed size.

But this binding is a quilter’s question. So please leave a comment which you think would look best and help me get to a finish: A, B, or C. I thank you very much!!

What I Learned Today:

Decision making is not one of my strengths.
There are a lot of decisions to make when sewing a quilt.
It’s always nice to ask a friend(s) for help.

Question: A, B, or C?

Linking with Wednesday Wait Loss, Finished or Not Friday, Can I Get a Whoop, Whoop?, Let’s Make Baby Quilts, Sew Can She, Moving It Forward Monday, Monday Making, Main Crush Monday, Jos Country Junction, WIPs, Linky Tuesday on Freemotion by the River,

Tu-Na Quilts: Happy National Sewing Machine Day!

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I thought I’d be sitting down in front of my sewing machine humming away (the sewing machine that is) all day until I realized that today is a very important day. Since I’ve had this partially written post in draft form just lying around, I thought this would be a good day to dust it off, finish it up, and hit publish.

I have two houses in two states that are far apart. This means I have a fabric stash and a sewing machine in each house. But it wasn’t always that way.

Up until last fall, I lovingly carted my beloved Pfaff back and forth between houses.

Here’s my Pfaff Creative 1475 CD model. I have lots of different feet for this one. I like the way they snap on and off so easily and I like the needle threader. But it has way more stitches and features than I have ever used. I’ve sewn my daughter dresses and hats with it. I’ve sewn my boys lots of pants and caps with it. She’s been through a lot of fabric through the years.

But I knew there would come a time I had to stop doing that (toting the machine back and forth) and decided it was then. Yes, I intentionally, left her behind last fall. It was hard to do as we (us dedicated quilters and sewists) can get quite attached to our machines.

I love that old machine. She works like a charm. I thought I’d be able to find another one just like her at my other house since that is in an area with lots of people and shops. But sadly none was to be found. After looking for a used machine for several weeks, and having a quilt that needed to be finished by Christmas, I decided to take the plunge and look for a new machine.

That took a few weeks and finally I made a decision to buy one, no, two machines: one for home and one to cart to class or work day with the quilting group.

But my husband said that sewing table needs to be cleaned first and then he’d help me lift them out of the box. My sewing space is close to the laundry area and garage entrance and becomes a catch-all place.

I made speedy work of stashing the stuff. Now I was ready to open those boxes.

A little red 215 to tote around.

A nice 740 with scissors (I love that feature) and LED lights (love that feature). But I had quite a time getting used to having a button and not a lever to lift the presser foot.

Both of those machines together cost almost as much as our new car did in 1979. If you add in the cost of all the extra feet I purchased, that put it over the cost of that 4 door Citation. My husband was in shock. “But both of them are on sale,” I pointed out. “And the feet and accessories are 25% off.”

Here’s a shot of her in action. I was working on the Mod Bear quilt, which I did finish in time for Christmas and have yet to write a blog post about.

Today I salute all three of my machines. Without them, I’d be doing it all by hand.

What I Learned Today:

According to the internet, the invention of the sewing machine saved countless hours of time (since about 1 hour of machine sewing was about the equivalent of 14 hours of hand sewing). I imagine with today’s impressive machines, even more time is saved.
The tailors of yesteryear feared the invention of the sewing machine since they saw it putting them out of business.
The first sewing machines cost $15.00 and was still cost-inhibitive for many thus making the tailors feel better.
I love the built-in scissors and automatic needle threader functions as well as that 11 inch throat on my new machine. However, the button to lift the presser foot is a bit hard to get used to. Now that I am back sewing on my Pfaff, I am always trying to push the invisible button and wondering why my presser foot isn’t going up. I imagine when I get back to sewing on the new one, I’ll be forever searching for the lever.
There’s a day to celebrate almost everything. Today is also:

National Make Your Dream Come True Day
National Call Your Doctor Day (I hope you don’t need to do that)
National Weed Your Garden Day
National Kitchen Klutzes of America Day
National Cupcake Lover’s Day
and International Axe Throwing Day

Question: Which one will you celebrate?

(UPDATE) This post was published yesterday-June 13, 2017. So today we are onto celebrating National Bourbon Day, National Pop Goes the Weasel Day (I kid you not), National Flag Day, National Strawberry Shortcake Day (I celebrated that on Sunday), and International Bath Day.

Linking to: Sew Fresh Quilts, Midweek Makers, Mama Spark’s World, Katie Mae Quilts, Silly Mama Quilts WIPs, Wednesday Wait Loss