SNOW? ICE? and Striped Christmas Stars

Striped Christmas Stars

Hey y'all, I'm waiting for this weekend's upcoming weather system: snow-ice-sleet-rain (Snowmageddon or Icepocalypse). Our forecasters can't decide between 24” of snow or 1/2” of ice but they do know it will be very cold for several days.

I figured a Christmas themed quilt for today's blog might bring on some simple snow. I am still catching up on projects that I cut out in 2024 before our move. This one I finished in early December 2025 and displayed on our bed during the holidays.

Red dots, teal print, and a coordinating plaid look nice with natural muslin. This pretty die from Blue Wren is called Eight Point Star of Stripes. Even though it looks complicated, it is very easy to sew. It was fun to design in EQ8. I added plaid sashing and a perky border of half-square triangles.

Quilting was done with cream thread using a utility zig-zag stitch in vertical lines every 2 inches. A bright teal blender for the backing and binding finish it off beautifully. Striped Christmas Stars is 48” square.

Whether we get record breaking snow or dangerous ice remains to be seen. Nashville's record snow was 17.2” in 1892, more recently 8” in 2016. The most I've ever seen is 10-12” in 1964. Cookeville's record is 15” (1966) and the county had 17” (1993).

The Tennessee weather forecasters and the internet have people in a panic, emptying grocery shelves of bread, milk, eggs, cheese, and lunch meat three days before the event. We have food and water and will be fine. At least I have hundreds of quilts to keep us warm if the power goes out. Plus, a Singer with a hand crank so I can sew by lamplight if necessary.

Dies used:

Blue Wren
    6466 Eight Point Star of Stripes 12” finished

Accuquilt
    55021 Value die 2” HST, square
    55017 Strips 2”

Change In The Air

Finally, a quilt! This one is aptly named, since change was definitely in the air. I cut the pieces way back in November of 2024, just before packing up the sewing room for our move. It's one of several that I prepared in advance so I'd be ready to sew once we arrived.

Now forward to December 2025...Change In The Air is at long last finished! The fresh blue fabric, bright melon dots and coral print look gorgeous together. 

I wanted something large, so used six inch sections to make 18” finished blocks. Chisels, half-square triangles, rectangles, and squares made a fun design using EQ8 software to fine tune the layout.  Finished size is 56" square.

I set them on point, filling in with half blocks and hand cut corners. I added 2” blue sashing plus cornerstones and binding in a navy & light red strawberry print. All work was done on Janelle, my Janome 9450 machine. I quilted free motion in a large meandering stitch using blue thread.

It felt awesome to complete a quilt in my new space! I whipped out a few more in December, they're lined up to share with you soon. I haven't set a blog schedule just yet (too busy sewing!), so watch here or on Useful Remnants/KatieScarlett Designs Facebook page for updates.  

See you later!

Dies used:

Blue Wren

  6274 Chisels 2” x 6”
  6047 Rectangles 2” x 6”

Accuquilt

  55000 Square 6”
  55059 Squares 2”
  55021 Value die 2” HST
  55017 Strips 2”
  55399 QST 8”

Back Where We Belong

We've come full circle. I'm happy to be starting a new year in a newer home located where we began as newlyweds over 50 years ago.

2025 was a crazy, hectic, and busy year. Buying our home last January was the easy part. Packing, moving, and getting the old one shined up and sold took time, much effort, and considerable stress. 

We had long days full of hard work. We sold, gave away, or tossed out of a lot of excess stuff. We learned new skills together, took our time, and did most of the work ourselves. Not bad for 70+ year old seniors, and it's been very satisfying to accomplish.

We met some delightful people along the way. Unfortunately, dealing with delays, stupid rules, and incompetent idiots taught us a few lessons. Our patience was tested a couple of times, failed once or twice. And our stress relieving hobbies were packed up for over nine months...no quilting, no electronics...never thought we could survive that!

Still, we enjoyed most of the process of planning, moving, and settling in at our new location. Goodbye Sumner County -- Hello Cookeville!

We're here now, right back where we belong, already relaxing and enjoying life. And that's all that matters. 

Sewing Again!

Hey everyone, I'm finally sewing again. Not quilting just yet, but stitching up things for our new home.

Buying and moving 75 miles away, then updating and selling our old house has taken up all my time. Especially when we've done nearly everything ourselves. Two 70+ year old coots can still get things done and even learn new skills! 

My sewing room was the first room we finished at the new place...priorities, you know. I took the master bedroom with walk-in closet since it was larger. His basement hobby space/workshop/den was second on our list. We are slowly settling in, tired but happy. 

This weekend I added my last new piece: a custom ironing table. The Harbor Freight cart was Jerold's idea--he had an extra one. We painted it, added a plywood top and stapled on a repurposed moving blanket for padding. I sewed the removable cover and it's ready to go. An added bonus: the two baskets underneath were formerly used for laundry, but they fit the cart perfectly to hold my unsorted scraps. Ta-da!

Hopefully soon I'll get back to quilting and posting. Till then, here's a few pics of my new space.