Quilting Again

The drive from CO. was a bit slow, the first couple of hours it was snowing and the roads were slick. This pic I took soon after we left the house. Once we left Cortez the weather cleared but there was more precipitation around Mt.Humphries, north of Flagstaff when we came by there.

With all the snow and family visiting you might well assume I wasn't even thinking of quilting, but I am always thinking quilting!

At Huggy Bunch Wednesday I bound 4 little blankies for the Humane Society from the small quilt "sandwiches" I keep by the side of the LA for checking tension and trying out new ideas etc. I use up strips of left over batting and fabric and instead of throwing them away I hem or bind them for the stray/lost critters, so much nicer than the floor of the cages they are kept in.

On the drive from CO. today I finished the hand applique on the center circles of the vintage 30's Dresden Plate blocks, all eighteen of them and for someone who avoids handwork that was quite a commitment! Now I can complete the top and add it to my stack of flimsies!

After we got into AZ this evening I began to cut the fabrics for a new project-my dear kind friend Rita has BC; she has completed the first round of chemo and has surgery March 19th. then more chemo and possibly radiation. I want to have a quilt ready for her when we return to CO. in a couple of weeks so I must get busy, no letting the grass grow under my feet,LOL!

These are the three fabrics I chose from my collection for the top........

and I have a really pretty beachy fabric for the backing. It will be a cheerful, spring-like quilt and hopefully a cuddly comfort for her recovery. No decision yet as to borders, I'll see what I have left once the rest is done and what other appropriate fabrics I can find in the stash. It's great to have a collection of fabrics to fall back on, now I rarely run to the QS and buy specifically for a new project, though I am not averse to purchasing additional pieces to complete a quilt if there is no other option!

No idea how I will quilt it, it's my first BQ2. Friend Loretta gave me the pattern a year or more ago and I am finally making use of it. The large floral focus fabric I am using is from one of my favorite designers, Valori Wells. I can see quilting some leafy wreaths in the large [9.5" ] blocks and perhaps leaves in the narrower strips.

The plan is to make this top then get busy on the longarm for the next week or two, I have a pile of tops waiting to be quilted.