Category Archives: cats

A Quilt for Coco

Like most cats, my Princess Cordelia — known to most as Coco — is an expert napper. She has plenty of roosting spots around the house, including on our bed, on the couch, on the chair and ironing board in my sewing room, and wrapped around the Dear Husband’s head (I’m not kidding). Until very recently, the one place that was off limits to Coco was the guest room.

All that changed when my twin Diane came to visit in November and came down with Covid. I felt so sorry for Diane that I allowed Coco to keep her company. Coco quickly added the guest bed to her list of favorite spots to catnap. Although I love seeing cats on quilts (check out #catsonquilts on Instagram), I didn’t want Coco on the quilt in my guest room. She won’t let me trim her nails, and the last thing I want to see is claw marks marring the lovely canvases of my quilts.

I quickly put an old bath towel on the guest room bed, and Coco has been quite content to snooze on it:

Still, I thought it would be nice if she had her own quilt, so I whipped this up yesterday:

Of course it’s not a real quilt. It’s a flannel blanket made after consulting a few of the Self-Binding Baby Blanket tutorials abounding on the Internet. After completing the blanket, I stitched four straight lines in a starburst pattern in the interior to hold the two layers together because I wasn’t sure if the blanket would keep its shape after being laundered.

Here’s a shot of the blanket taken yesterday evening, in anticipation of a visit from Coco:

There was evidence this morning (an imprint of her plump body) that she had napped on the blanket sometime in the night.

Today Coco’s Quilt (which is how I keep thinking of it) went into the washer and dryer. I am happy to report that the little quilt kept its shape beautifully. As expected, it did shrink because I didn’t prewash the flannel fabrics beforehand. It finished at 30.5″ square before laundering and 29″ square after.

As I made the blanket, I made notes to myself on suggestions and instructions I would add if I were to make another one. I’ll write those up and offer them in a subsequent blog post. In the meantime, I’m waiting for Coco to curl up on her new quilt. It’s just a matter of time.

 

 

 

Posted in baby blanket, cats, family, self-binding baby blanket, update | 5 Comments

Accessorizing the Home

I’ve been spending a wee bit of time in my sewing room over the last week. It could have been more but I had my nose in a book. A big book:  715 pages, to be exact. It’s Abraham Verghese’s bestselling novel The Covenant of Water. I actually bought it last summer but was reluctant to begin such a lengthy tome until after my cataract surgeries in June and August. Reading is once again a great pleasure, and this freezing cold snap in the Pacific Northwest over the last several days presented an ideal opportunity to curl up with a good book with either a cat or a quilt (sometimes both) on my lap.

I did venture into my sewing room from time to time, working around the schedules of the workmen repairing the walls and ceiling in the upstairs hallway following water damage from a rain storm. The hallway now looks brand new — a touch of irony in a house that’s 111 years old — but the texture on the walls beautfully mimics the original lath and plaster so you’ll hear no complaints from me. All the hallway needs now is a coat of primer and two coats of color.

I’ve been working on some small things:

This is a quilter’s tool caddy, using the pattern Travel Case by Pearl Pereira of P3 Designs. I’ve made several versions over the years, modifying the design in a few ways but most importantly by adding a fourth pocket so the caddy holds more:

The tool caddy is one of four accessories to go with my current Junior Billie Bag-in-progress. I’ll finish it soon along with three other accessories that go with it — a rotary cutter coat, a scissors case, and a fabric box that I use as a threadcatcher. I’m so enjoying the fabrics — most of them from the Gingham Foundry line by Riley Blake that came out in 2021.

You may remember I used the same fabric last October in a pair of pillowcases made for the Portland White House. I just finished a second pair for my twin Diane, who arrives on Saturday for a two-week visit. Ordinarily she would be surprised by seeing them wrapped up with a ribbon in the guest bedroom but she reads my blog so as soon as she sees this post she’ll know they await.

I couldn’t resist fussycutting the text print on the band so that the refrain “I think to myself what a wonderful world” appears on the top and bottom lines of the band:

A bit obessive-compulsive? Umm, yes.

I also made myself a new oven mitt (from my own tutorial) but got two in the bargain:

I had cut out the fabric and batting weeks ago for the mitt on the right; the materials were stacked in my sewing room closet just waiting for me. I can’t remember why I got out the tub that my oven mitt supplies are stored in but when I did I was surprised to find there was a mitt inside that was almost finished! All I needed to do was tack the red band down and turn the mitt right side out. I adore that tomato print and thought I had used the last of it. Now I well and truly have.

So much for accessories. What about quilts? Well, I have two quilts I started last year that I really need to finish but I’m already dreaming about starting a new one. . .

 

 

 

Posted in Billie Bag, cats, family, home dec, Junior Billie Bag, oven mitts, pillowcases, roll-it-up pillowcases, rotary cutter case, sewing tool caddy, tote bags, tutorial, update | 4 Comments

It’s Summer Somewhere . . .

Happy New Year, friends! The weather forecast in Portland, Oregon calls for “frozen mix” on six of the next 10 days, with temperatures heading down to 15 degrees Fahrenheit. That is very unusual for Portland. The residents of the Portland White House, including Coco the cat, are hunkering down.

As we all know, “It’s five o’clock somewhere.” And it’s also summer somewhere — the Southern Hemisphere, to be precise. I’m trying to bring a bit of summer into our home during these dark winter days by hanging my quilt Hip Hop in the master bathroom:

Hip Hop is made of a delightful aboriginal focus fabric highlighting five playful kangaroos. I made this quilt in 2018 from my own pattern Full Moon Rising, which features inset circles. It measures 16″ x 59″ and works well as a wall hanging or table runner. Click here to see close-ups of a couple of blocks taken in better light.

It’s hard to believe that we’re almost two weeks into the New Year and I’ve not sewn a single stitch. Sad but true! What I have done is edit the contents of my sewing room following the December wind and rainstorm that resulted, at great inconvenience, in a beautiful new ceiling:

Most of the contents of the room had to be moved out temporarily, and it gave me pause to consider how much stuff I had crammed into it over the years. What a great opportunity to downsize! Case in point:  I had more than a dozen vintage spooners and celery vases filled with buttons on top of my sewing cabinet. I replaced them with three bandboxes filled with sewing notions:

The bandboxes, covered with vintage wallpaper, were purchased years ago at an antique mall in Atlanta while visiting my sister. They used to be on the floor next to the cabinet. I guess you could say they have risen in stature, ha ha! The buttons (which, to be honest, gathered layers of dust in those spooners) are now housed in two very large jars in my sewing room closet.

I have been going through the contents of the cabinet, pulling out fabrics I am no longer in love with and can happily donate. (Please don’t tell anyone this represents only a small portion of my stash.)

The other thing I did is cover the glass doors on the right side of the cabinet with blackout film to block the light coming in from the windows right next to them. This prevents the fabrics from developing fade lines from the light. Prior to that I had hung an old table runner over that side of the cabinet, anchoring it with those vintage spooners. It wasn’t a great look, and every time I took a photo for my blog that included the cabinet I would flip the table runner on top of the cabinet to get it out of the way. This is a much better solution.

I am really enjoying the cleaner look of my sewing room. Once everything is in its proper place, I may be inspired to give you a little tour of my precious sewing space. It won’t happen immediately, though. Now that the bathroom and sewing room ceilings have been repaired, the crew is tackling the damage to the walls and ceiling of the hallway. As Yogi Berra so eloquently put it, “It ain’t over till it’s over.”

 

 

 

Posted in cats, home dec, table runner, update | 5 Comments

“She Sells Seashells by the Seashore”

I’ll bet every grownup in the English-speaking world learned that tongue twister as a kid. It popped into my head today as I was finishing up the second of two valances for my stepmother Shirley’s master bathroom. Both valances were made using a small scale seashell print from the “Cotton Beach Collection” by Tilda Fabrics. This is the larger of the two valances, gathered on a spring tension rod the width of the larger window, 29¼”:

(Notice the sleeping cat on the couch behind me? That’s Coco, enjoying her afternoon nap.)

This is the smaller valance made to fit a window that’s only 13¼” wide:

They are the first two things I’ve sewn since moving back into my sewing room after having the ceiling replaced following the wind and rainstorm of Dec. 1 that damaged several rooms in our house. I wrote about that here.

Behold my pretty new ceiling:

I popped the valances in the mail today; with luck they should arrive at Shirley’s home in Bend by Saturday. Making the valances was a simple project but very satisfying. And I must say it feels good to be back in my happy place!

 

 

 

Posted in cats, family, update, valance | 4 Comments

The Rest of the Story

For those of you who commented on my last post, thank you so much for your sympathetic and encouraging responses to my tale of woe. As bad as the water damage was to our home caused by the rainstorm late Friday, Dec. 1, it could have been worse. You see, I was awake much earlier on Saturday morning than I normally would be and thus discovered the damage sooner.

On that same Friday my twin sister Diane, here from Georgia for a month-long visit, tested positive for Covid. She had started showing cold symptoms — a cough and sniffles — on Wednesday. Her symptoms continued and by Thursday evening all she wanted to do was go to bed. That was when I began to suspect she might have more than a cold.

The first home Covid test on Friday morning was negative so I waited a few hours and gave her another. That one was definitely positive. As an out-of-state visitor, the only way she could be seen by a physician (and presumably get a prescription for Paxlovid) was to go to a hospital Emergency Room. We decided to do that first thing Saturday morning.

At bedtime I told her to call me on my cellphone as soon as she was awake, even if it was really early in the morning, so we could get to the hospital when fewer people would be waiting to be seen. I think her call came around 5:30 am. And that’s when I discovered the water coming into my home. As it happened, my contractor was out of town for the weekend so I called the roofing company and left a message explaining what was happening. In fewer than 3o seconds, I had a text message reply:  “We’re on our way.”

So off Diane and I went to the ER, where she was indeed the only person in the waiting room. By then she had a temperature of 100.8. The ER doctor ordered an X-ray of her lungs, which showed some congestion, and he did prescribe Paxlovid. By midmorning we were back home, prescription in hand, and Diane was back in bed.

She quarantined in the guest room in the basement for the next week. (Although the Dear Husband and I are both up to date on our Covid vaccines (as well as vaccines for flu and RSV), Diane wanted to keep her distance from the DH since he’s in a high risk category due to his age and a heart condition.) It took two full days on Paxlovid before Diane started to feel better but every day after that she showed some improvement. Of course she had to delay her departure till she tested negative. I had the pleasure of her company for an extra week, which was a bonus for me.

During Diane’s time in the sick bay, I felt so sorry for her that I allowed Coco to visit her in the guest room, although that has always been off limits.

Do you think that was a mistake?

 

 

 

Posted in cats, family, update | 8 Comments

Disaster Averted!

I ended my last post with the breezy statement that after binding and labeling Diane’s Car Quilt, I was going to pop it into the washer and dryer to achieve that soft crinkly effect. Little did I know what was in store. . .

Into the washing machine the quilt went with a few clean rags to even out the load and a couple of Color Catchers, those ingenious paper-like squares that trap excess dyes in the wash water. I washed the quilt in cold water on a delicate cycle, something I have done many times with other quilts being washed for the first time. Imagine my shock and disbelief when I pulled the quilt out of the washing machine and saw blotches of red and blue all over the yellow fabric. My quilt — excuse me, Diane’s quilt — had bled! The dyes had even traveled through the batting to the quilt back.

Diane and I were in a panic. I’m one of those quiltmakers who wash and iron all of their fabrics before cutting into them. How did this happen? I have a theory, which I will tell you about shortly. Our first course of action was to spray Shout, a laundry stain remover, on all of the offending places. We filled the stationary tub next to the washing machine with cold water, plunged the quilt in, and let it soak. While that was happening, I started searching the Internet for remedies.

I remembered reading about quilt bleeding before and recalled that Dawn dishwashing liquid was involved in solving the problem. Sure enough, I found several references. There were variations in the approach but most recommended soaking the quilt in hot water with Dawn.

We washed the quilt again in cold water to remove the Shout. I wish I could say it came out perfectly but it didn’t. It was definitely better but there were still offending blotches all over the quilt. This time I applied Dawn liberally to each remaining blotch, filled the stationary tub with warm water, and put the quilt back in to soak. I just couldn’t bring myself to use hot water as most sites recommended.

Fast forward to a happy ending. After a soak in the warm water and one more trip through the washer using warm water, the quilt came out with nary a bleed spot in sight. Whew! Into the dryer it went, and it dried beautifully. It did shrink a bit more than I expected, finishing at 40½” square.

So . . . this is what I think happened:  my washing machine is the kind that adjusts the water level to the size of the load. First it releases a little water into the drum, spins the load a bit, adds more water, spins again, and finally lets the remaining water in before the agitation begins. I think the bleeding happened in the initial stages of the water filling the drum, when the fabrics in the quilt were only slightly wet and were rubbing against each other as the load was spinning.

It didn’t occur to me to take photos of the bleeding for my blog. I was totally fixated on trying to eliminate the blotches. You can bet that the next time I wash a quilt, I will immerse it in water in the stationary tub first and transfer it to the washing machine while it’s soaking wet.

And now I am both relieved and delighted to show you my sister’s freshly laundered car quilt. As you can see, Coco has claimed it, albeit temporarily. Notice not one but two proprietary paws:

All’s well that ends well!

 

 

 

Posted in cats, family, update | 11 Comments

Apron Love

That smile on my face reflects my delight in this darling apron my friend and fellow quiltmaker Nancy S. surprised me with recently. It’s called a crossback reversible apron. You’ll understand why when you see the back:

Did you notice I said it’s reversible? Look at the fabric Nancy chose for the reverse side:

As someone who likes to cook and sew, these fabrics are right up my alley. The two prints are a supple blend of cotton and flax designed by Sevenberry for Robert Kaufman Fabrics.

A quick search of the internet shows numerous patterns available for crossback reversible aprons. Nancy used this pattern by Indygo Junction:

The apron is beautifully made. Thank you, Nancy, for this lovely gift! You can be sure it will be treasured and used.

As usual, Coco the Photobomb gets the last word:

 

 

 

 

Posted in aprons, cats, garment sewing, update | 4 Comments

Back, As Promised . . .

. . . with a few photos of Vintage Vignettes, all soft and puckery after being laundered:

The quilt measured 80″ x 92″ after being quilted and trimmed. Now, after laundering, it measures 75″ x 89″ — a little more shrinkage than I was expecting but there’s a reason. When I bought the quilt top I could tell the fabrics hadn’t been washed so I didn’t wash the fabric I bought for the outer border and backing either. (Yes, I’m one of those quiltmakers who washes, dries, and irons her quilting cottons before cutting into them.)

Here’s Coco lending a helping hand — er, paw — as I measured the quilt:

It’s very challenging getting the light right when photographing fabrics indoors — especially pastels. Depending on the time of day and amount of light coming in the windows, the colors can look completely different. This is pretty close, though:

No chance for outdoor photos today: it’s raining in Portland! You know what that means, don’t you? No gardening today! I’m heading right back up to my sewing room.

P.S. I’ve already added Vintage Vignettes to the Gallery page on my website, which you can visit here. It includes a link to additional photos taken during the quilt’s construction.

 

 

 

 

Posted in '30s reproduction fabrics, cats, update, vintage quilts | 10 Comments

It’s a Wrap: Vintage Vignettes

Hooray, my Vintage Vignettes quilt is done. I finished binding it last week on a short but sweet road trip with the Dear Husband to Walla Walla, Washington (and added the label yesterday).

These next few photos were taken in Walla Walla’s tranquil Pioneer Park:

Doesn’t that dappled sunlight give the quilt a lovely glow?

You may remember I acquired the unfinished quilt top by an unknown maker last August at my quilt guild’s annual silent auction . . .

. . . only to discover later that my dear friend Vivienne Moore had pieced these blocks about 20 years ago. She donated the top to the Metropolitan Patchwork Society auction through a friend who also belongs to the guild.

Lucky for me, Viv had a piece of that lavender sashing fabric in her stash that enabled me to complete the first border as it would have been impossible to match. I added a wide floral border using a ’30s reproduction fabric that played very nicely with the fabrics in Viv’s blocks. Here’s a photo of the finished quilt taken in the same spot:

Another friend who had inherited a large stash of ’30s repro fabric gave me a piece of solid medium blue to use for the binding after I had visited several local quilt shops without finding a suitable shade.

The label, outlined in the same blue, identifies Vivienne as the maker of the blocks:

It wouldn’t be a photoshoot without Coco the Photobomber making an appearance, right?

I’ll be back with a few more photos after Vintage Vignettes takes a trip through the washer and dryer. You know how I love the puckery softness that laundering gives a quilt!

 

 

 

Posted in '30s reproduction fabrics, cats, family, Metropolitan Patchwork Society, quilt labels, update, vintage quilts | 7 Comments

It’s A Wrap: September Song

September Song is complete. It’s in the washing machine as I write this. I couldn’t wait to show it to you, even if it’s not in its absolute finished condition. (You know how I love the puckery look of a freshly laundered quilt.)

Once the label was made . . .

. . . I fused it to the back of the quilt and then stitched around the outer edge by hand:

Don’t you think September Song looks good on my couch? I may have to add it to my rotation. As I was taking photos, You-Know-Who came along to fulfill her usual role of photobomber:

Don’t be fooled, though. Coco couldn’t care less about my quilt. She’s giving me that look because she thinks it’s dinnertime.

 

 

 

Posted in cats, leaf block, quilt labels, update | 10 Comments