Sweet Tradition

This little quilt is similar to some made by Granny Hill and Granny Rose. In keeping with their tradition, I sewed it all on Rockette, my 1960's era Singer 500-A Rocketeer machine. She's a beauty and still sews like a dream. I do have to get used to trimming my own thread and manually raising/lowering the presser foot, but that doesn't take long. I may be a little spoiled by modern conveniences.

Pretty vintage style prints emphasize the old fashioned feel of time-honored kaleidoscope or kite blocks. I combined sections of two Accuquilt dies to give me fewer seams. These didn't take long at all to cut and stitch. I alternated pastel and medium toned blocks to balance the colors.

Sweet Tradition is 40” square, perfect baby or child size. I quilted with cream thread in a straight stitch alongside each block seam and across the triangles.

Recreating old patterns is one of my passions.  Seeing antique blocks made by the grannies inspires me. I love making them come to life in retro style or modern quilts. I have a list a mile long that of ideas I want to try. There just aren't enough hours in the day!

Accuquilt dies used:
55409 Triangle in square 4” finished (triangle)
55254 Kite 4” finished (kite)
55017 2 ½” strip (binding)

At the heart of every

family tradition

is a meaningful

experience

To see blog posts about my Rocketeer or other vintage quilts from Granny Rose and Granny Hill, click on their label below:

On The Sunny Side

Here's another simple but pretty quilt, just right for scraps in shades of yellow, gray, and white. It didn't take that long to cut the triangle shapes. I sewed them in batches, and arranged on my design wall to distribute the colors.

On The Sunny Side is 48” square. I chose a gray swirl design on white for backing and binding. I quilted across each square in a serpentine stitch, horizontally and vertically, using yellow thread on top and gray in the bobbin. 

It's fabulous to be in the sewing room on hot or rainy days, doing what I love.


Accuquilt dies used:
55047 4” finished quarter square triangles
55017 2½” strip for binding

Keep on the sunny side,
Always on the sunny side
Keep on the sunny side of life

Greenway

In this hot August weather, I've been staying inside working on something cool, green, and fresh. I saw a photo of this design online, done up in different colors, so I sewed my version of the pattern.

My Greenway quilt was fairly quick to stitch up. The ten inch blocks are set on point, alternating each block design. The simple cross is made of squares and rectangles in neutral tans, aqua, and white on cream vine print. For the green blocks, I added a small cream half-square triangle across the corner of finished HST squares.

I sewed partial blocks to fill in the corners and sides for this 43” x 57” snuggle quilt. Quilting is a straight stitch in cream thread along both sides of the seams. For backing, I used a large scale stripe in green, aqua and cream with an off center ten inch wide strip of a green tiny print. Green binding frames it up nicely.

Accuquilt dies used:

55031 Half Square 4” finished
55159 Rectangle 2 ½” x 4 ½”
55018 Small Value die 4 ½” square and 2 ½” HST
55017 2½” strip for binding

Side note: This week's our 47^th anniversary, a low key celebration for sure. No elegant restaurant meal or trip to the beach; still too much COVID around for us to venture out. That's ok, all we need is each other. We're not fancy people anyhow. We'll be happy to enjoy a simple grilled steak, salad, and baked potato dinner, a bottle of wine, and a movie. Sounds like a perfect night in the home we've created together.

Little Boy Blue

Baby quilts are so much fun to sew. I made this sweet bow tie design with fabric purchased at the $1 sale a few weeks ago.

A simple traditional block sewed with four blue and white small prints gives it a vintage vibe. Little Boy Blue is 42” square. I quilted with light blue thread in free motion double loops, going diagonally across the squares. Backing is a creamy white with medium blue swirling designs.

This size could also be used for a wall hanging or table topper. It's a quick and easy layout that sews up in a flash.

Accuquilt dies used:

55772 Bowtie 6” finished square
55818 Half square 1 ½” finished square
55006 Square 3 ½”
55017 2½” strip

Do more things
that make you forget
to check your phone

Feelin' Groovy

These colors remind me of 1967. Bright pink, orange, green, yellow, and aqua are balanced by navy. I started with a half-yard bundle called Art Gallery, from Pineapple Fabrics, then added a few of my own pieces (some from my new $1 stash).

I designed the layout in EQ8 before sewing them all together. I quilted with orange thread in diagonal lines, one straight stitch, one serpentine. I love this one! The solid orange backing has a strip of 6” squares running down the center.

Feelin' Groovy is 44” x 53” size, nice for a picnic or a nap, if the dazzling colors don't keep you awake. 

Accuquilt dies used:
55147 Half square triangle 2 ¼” finished
55731 Signature 4 ½” finished
55017 2½” strip
55000 6½” square 

Ba da-da da-da da-da, feeling groovy

--Paul Simon