Lucky for me, one of the temporary exhibits at the Vesterheim Museum in Decorah was on area quilts.

The squares on this quilt are simple, but the embroidery was beautiful.

At the top it says, “My Uncles, Aunts and Cousins/Made By Lena Wernson/Quandahl, Iowa.”

I wonder if she made all the blocks.  The writing on them differs, so she may have asked her relatives to each embroider a block.

Of she may have had them write on a block and she did the embroidery.

I guess we’ll never know for sure.

At least she signed and dated it!

I just had an email from one of my newsletter subscribers reminding me of a speedy way to make nine-patches.  I’d seen it done years ago, and forgotten all about it.  With this method, you get two nine-patches at a time.  How perfect for our Summer Nine-Patch Project! Now you can make two blocks a day faster than making one block the traditional way.  That means you’ll either end up with twice as many blocks, or you’ll only have to sew every other day!  Thanks, Peggy, for the reminder.

Here’s a tutorial on how to make the Two-For-One Nine-Patch blocks.  The example is for a 9″ finished block, but at the end of the tutorial, I’ll give you the formula (and chart) so you can make any size block you want.

1.  Layer a light and dark fabric, right sides together, and cut a 10-1/2″ square.

2. Using a 1/4″ seam allowance, join the squares together on two opposite sides.

3. Take the to your cutting board and measure in 3-1/2″ from one stitched side.  Cut.

4. Measure in 3-1/2″ from the other stitched side and cut.  You will have two stitched segments and two unstitched strips.

5. Press the stitched segments toward the dark fabric.  Add a contrasting strip to one side of each block.

6. Stitch and press toward the dark fabric.

7. Place the two segments right sides together with the seams running in the same direction.  If you pressed everything toward the dark fabric, the seams will nest together.

8. Now stitch together across the previously made seams.  Stitch both opposite sides.

9. Cut 3-1/2″ from each seamed edge.

10. Press toward the side with the most dark fabric.  Add the unstitched strips to the pieced segments, dark to light.

11. Voila!  You have two mirror image blocks!

Here’s the formula for cutting the squares.  Take the size of the strip that you would cut for a regular nine-patch block and multiply times 3–it’s that simple.  In our example, we would have cut strips 3-1/2″, so 3-1/2″ x 3 is 10-1/2″, the size of our square.

Here’s a chart to make it a little easier.  Block sizes given are for finished blocks.

For 3″ blocks, start with a 4-1/2″ square

For 4-1/2″ blocks, start with a 6″ square

For 6″ blocks, start with a 7-1/2″ square

For 9″ blocks, start with a 10-1/2″ square

For 12″ blocks, start with a 13-1/2″ square

Have fun and be sure to join the Facebook group and post pictures of your blocks!

Sign up for my email newsletter at annalena.com.

If you’re like me, it can be hard to find time to sew in the summer when there are so many distractions.  Well, this summer, why don’t you join The Nine-Patch Project?

What’s the Nine-Patch Project?  There really are no rules.  It’s just a commitment to make one nine-patch block each day this summer!  If you do this from June 1 through August 31, you’ll have 92 nine-patch blocks at the end of summer!

What size should they be?  Make your nine-patches any size you want.  Here are the sizes of squares to cut for various sized blocks:

Cut 1 1/2″ squares for 3″ Blocks
Cut 2″ squares for 4 1/2″ Blocks
Cut 2 1/2″ squares for 6″ Blocks
Cut 3 1/2″ squares for 9″ Blocks
Cut 4 1/2″ squares for 12″ Blocks

What fabric should I use?  Anything goes.  Use all the same fabric, use up strips and squares from your stash.  Surely you must have some.  You can be color controlled or completely scrappy.  You can do light/dark, dark/light, you can use two colors in each block or you can use nine different fabrics in each block.  It’s up to you.

What if I miss a day?  Make two the next!  Miss a week, make seven next week.  C’mon, they’re nine-patches.  Nothing could be easier!  This is a no-stress, anything goes project meant to be nothing but fun.

There’s even a Facebook page where you can sign up to join the fun.  9-Patch Project at Facebook here.  You can post pictures of your blocks and be inspired by the pictures others post.  Several of my web  friends are involved in this project, and in the end, we’ll give you some ideas for setting your blocks together.  Don’t overlook the power of the nine-patch!

Here’s a vintage nine-patch quilt that’s in my collection.  Very scrappy, but every center is yellow.

Here’s my version of the above quilt, just using orange for my centers and setting the blocks on point.

Here’s a controlled scrappy that I saw on the internet.  Again, all the centers are the same.

Here’s another on-point version made by Marla.

I sure hope you’ll join in the fun!

I’ve been saving the selvages from my fabrics and I’m getting quite a bin full.

A long time ago I made this fun Quilt In A Cup, but I haven’t done anything else–until now!

It’s really fun to see my name and Anna Lena’s on the selvages.  I’ve been wanting to do something with them, but it seems like there’s never time for a project that isn’t FOR something–to support a fabric line, for a class, for a book.  So, a few days ago, I decided to heck with everything else, I’m making something with my selvages!  The result is this little bag.

It was more of an experiment than a real project, and I’d do some things differently if I did it again. But it’s kind of cute and I did learn a cool thing when quilting the orange polka dot fabric for the bottom.  If you look at the polka dots just right, they make a perfect diagonal line!  So, I sat down at my Elna and just followed every other line of dots to do my grid quilting, and it worked perfectly.

I think you can see it better from the back.

I’m going to remember that for a future project!

I’m just back from a great week in Central Oregon, and now we have our two oldest grandchildren with us.  But, I have a free moment, so wanted to share a few more of the Pomeroy Show quilts with you.   I’m a sucker for scrappy quilts.  Here are some of my favorites from different eras.

We’ll start with the late 1800′s.

And these from the 1930′s.

And even these from the 1960′s!

And this great current one!

Last weekend I had a wonderful day of quilting fun and relaxation at the Pomeroy House Living History Farm.

Connie and Robin were there, too.  Really, that’s them in the photo below!

The old farm is such a wonderfully charming place for a quilt show.

I love how the put the quilts on the fences and buildings.

Luckily, the chickens had some shade–it was a very hot day!

Seeing these makes me want to drag all my quilts outside.

Oh, I’m glad I don’t have to wash like this!

Ah, more shade!

I don’t know if I took this picture for Bob because it’s a tractor or for me because it’s orange!

Oh, there’s Connie and Robin.  I knew I’d catch up with them again!

More photos of quilt to come–and all the aprons in the presentation!

Aka Guild Fun

Recently my friend Robin gave a presentation at our Guild about block exchanges.  

You see, she belongs to a group called The Ruthless Quilters (Ruth moved to Idaho!) and every year they do a block exchange.  Robin picks a block and everybody makes a specific number of blocks.  Then they trade blocks so that everyone has blocks made by everyone else.  Now each person has exactly the same blocks, but how they put them together is up to them.  

This was my favorite of the exchange quilts that Robin brought for show and tell.  No, I don’t think the color orange influenced me one bit!  Isn’t it amazing what different people did with their blocks?!?

How great is this!?!

Last Christmas I did a little give-away here on my blog.  It was for a Twinkler like this one.

You might not be able to see in the photo, but there are three fabrics in the Twinkler–Blue Square Dance, Orange Square Dance and the print I call Hollywood.  The Twinkler was won by Judy in Sedro-Woolley.  

Well today in the mail, what should I get?  A most adorable pincushion/thread holder made by Judy.  She used the fabrics from the Twinkler.  She even used the rick rack that it was tied with.  

Don’t you love the friends you make quilting?  And they just seem to know what will touch your heart.  This is the second pincushion I’ve gotten in the mail–and they couldn’t be more perfect gifts, because I’d never make one for myself.  

Thank you, Judy.

aka a quilt in a hurry

Every year my dear friend Pat makes a quilt to donate as a fund raiser to a golf tournament.  The tournament is held in Minnesota and named for her brother.  And each year I quilt the quilt for her.  She gives me the top months in advance, but I always wait until the last minute to get it done.  This year was no different, but when I went to the quilt cupboard to get it the other day, it was nowhere to be found.  You can’t imagine the searching that has gone on–all to no avail.  So I made a distress call to Center Diamond and asked them to send me golf fabric and coordinates.  They had a large Alexander Henry print called Augusta.  I took all they had.  This quilt is the result.    I’m still heartsick about Pat’s quilt top.  My only hope is that it turns up and the quilt for next year is already to go–right on the quilt machine, that is!

I think I’m in love

I’ve spent the last few days appliqueing circles–not my favorite thing, but not that bad, just time consuming.  The number 7 stitch on my Elna made it quite easy.  And, it’s paid off.  I love the results!  This is the sample I’m doing for Quilt Market with my new fabric line called Sweet Pea.  Eventually it will be a free pattern.  I posted about the line on the My Quilt Village blog this morning, but I didn’t have all the blocks done then.  At this point, it’s just up on the design wall.  I still have to decide on borders, but first, I’m off to get these blocks sewn together!