Tuesday, January 8, 2013

Autumn Tints

     I am getting  sick of half square triangles, so when I came across this picture I decided to take a break from then.  I made this quilt several years ago for a book called Christmas Scrapcrafts.   I sent all the projects to New York to be photographed  and someone walked off with all of them.  The only thing I got back was a few photos. 

     This is a super easy, quick quilt that you could probably finish in a weekend.  I used fabric I had on hand but you can use any colors you want.  You will need 3  yards for the large squares and 3 yards for the light squares, plus assorted amounts of 12 colors for the small squares.

     Cut dark fabric into 7" squares.  Cut light fabric into 4: wide strips.  Cut colored fabrics into 4" strips.  Sew a light and colored fabric together, then cut apart every 4".  Sew two such squares together to form a checkerboard. 

     Working across, start with a plain square, then alternate with a pieced square, end with a plain square.
You will need 12 print #1, 10 print #2, 8 print #3, 6 print #4, 4 print #5 and 2 print#6.
For the second row, start with print #7 then follow the same sequence as the first row.  The left side will start with a new print, then follow the sequence as before.   You will need 12 print #7, 10 print #8, 8 print #9, 6 print # 10, 4 print #11 and 2 print #12.

Sunday, January 6, 2013

It's Garden Time

       Next to quilting, gardening is my second passion.   I know it's January and at least here in Ohio there is snow on the ground, but now is the time to start planning the garden.   Several years ago I wrote a book called "Garden Diary".  It's broken down into months and each section begins with "Things To Do This Month."  Here is
the one for January.

1.   Plan this year's garden.
2.   Prune fruit trees, summer blooming trees and shrubs as weather   permits.
3.   Fertilize spring blooming shrubs.
4.   Keep snow build up off evergreen brances to prevent breaking.
5.   Force rhubarb.
6.   Force chichons.
7.   Force bulbs.
8.   Clean and sharpen tools.
9.   Comparison shop the seed companies and decide what you will plant this year.
10.  Assemble flats and soil for next month's indoor planting.

     Hope this gets you in the mood.