I’m at a quilt retreat in Central Oregon this week with three of my fellow Quisters (Quilt Sisters). Of course we all brought lots of projects to work on. Deborah was the first one to finish a project. She is embarking on a series of small Civil War quilts, and here is the first one:
The quilt, made of 4″ blocks set on point, measures 31″ x 37″ with borders. The block is called Crosses and Losses. I especially like this one:
Deborah found the design in Civil War Legacies: Quilt Patterns for Reproduction Fabrics by Carol Hopkins (That Patchwork Place, 2012). Carol Hopkins named her design “Grandpap’s Cards” because her grandfather kept his playing cards arranged in perfectly straight lines, much like the way the Crosses and Losses blocks are lined up across this quilt top.
The book is full of charming small quilts — the one Deborah chose is the largest one in the book — made with beautiful repro Civil War fabrics and sporting whimsical names such as “Mo’s Suspenders” and “Alexander’s Bean Pot.” I can’t wait to see which one Deborah chooses next!
My first finish of the week is this iron caddy, the perfect container to transport a still-hot iron after taking a quilt class:
The caddy doubles as an ironing pad because the inside is lined with a silvery heat-resistant fabric like the kind you find on ironing board covers. When the tote is opened up, you have a nice little ironing surface measuring about 19″ x 25″. The pattern, “Caddy Pad,” was designed by Sisters’ Common Thread (http://www.sisterscommonthread.com/caddy/).
I bought the main body fabric a couple of years ago. It’s Wildflowers IV by Sentimental Studios for Moda. If you look carefully you can see a companion fabric from the same line on the inside of the handles. The binding fabric is more recent; it’s from the Ainsley line by Northcott.
Here’s the outside of the caddy, laid out flat:
Here you can see the ironing surface on the inside:
I departed from the directions by 1) adding a different fabric to the inside of the handles, 2) inserting the handles in the seam allowance before adding the binding, 3) rounding off the angled corners, 4) applying bias binding instead of straight grain binding (because of the rounded corners), and 5) fusing the binding to the inside with Steam-a-Seam-2. I finished the caddy with vintage yellow buttons.
With four of us sewing and crafting, there’s going to be a lot of show and tell this week. I hope you’ll come back for a visit!
Crosses and Losses was one of the quilts highlighted in the play Quilters at the Gallery Theater in McMinnville!
it’s a great block, isn’t it?! How was the the play, Linda? I saw it once many years ago and really enjoyed it.
Hi Dawn,
Looks like the weather is giving you a wonderful backdrop for creativity. I love central Oregon. I taught for the Bend district for six years and really enjoyed my time over there. I made one of the iron caddies and love taking it to classes. I even went so far as to have a matching thread catcher and small notebook cover. Have a productive week!
Vickie
I’d love to see your matched set sometime, Vickie!
Your friend Deborah looks a really lot like my friend Fearless Leader. She does have a fine way with points, doesn’t she? I tend to alternate a wedge and a point. Achieving all points is definitely a worthy goal.
Have fun!
Hi There! I was just wondering if by some chance you know Mardyth Peterson? She is at a Retreat in Central Oregon this week too. She is a Long Arm quilter and is also my cherished Sister in Law. I was thinking, wow, if you know her, this is indeed a small world. I love projects you showed us in this post. Enjoy the rest of your retreat. Hugs…
***If you do know my SIL, tell her I said “HI” LOL.
I don’t know Mardyth, Nancy, but I’ll keep an eye out for her. Quilters seem to find each other!
Thanks Dawn! :o)
You guys are certainly being productive. I’m impressed. Miss you all!
We miss you (and Lee) too, Viv!
Hi Dawn
I bought a kit for that little caddy at Expo, and I just love it. It it also available in Denmark, and one of my friends made it too. Have fun at your retreat. I’m having 3 ladies for a retreat at my house next week, and I’m looking forward to teach them paperpiecing.
Fondly Merethe
[…] I made this pattern for the first time in March, when I was on a retreat with the Quisters. I made a few modifications to the pattern which you can read about here. […]