Hello Pieceful Quilters:

As many of you know, I am a huge fan of Stitchin' Heaven cruises - especially the Civil War Cruise, which I will be going on in April this year.  Because a few of us have banded together and we keep coming back, we are planning to do a separate block exchange, and possibly use one of the exchanges that I have done with Sarah's Sewing Circle in the past.  I am posting the instructions here, for anyone that is interested.  In our club, we used Carol Hopkins' Give and Take pattern.  I believe this pattern may be in one of her more recent books, as well:

 

My instructions are to make 6 identical blocks.  For the exchange you will keep 1 block and bring 5 to exchange.  You may make as many sets as you wish.  If you want to make this quilt, you will need to make 14 sets.  If you wish to have a regular sized PDF file, email me at carrie@piecefulgathering.com

Please contact me if you have questions!

Looking forward to seeing you all in April!

Sarah's Sewing Circle News 

Hello Sarah Members!

What a busy year I have planned for you!  In addition to the Circa 1880 Quilt and other club patterns, we will be starting the year with some quilts and projects made with my Charlotte line that FINALLY arrived today!  We were getting a little bit worried, since the Charlotte BOM starts next week.  We still have a couple of openings if you are interested, and it is also available for mail order:

 

 I did finish my Sarah's Mini Medallion Fibonacci Challenge quilt - well, the top - that is finished in my book!  As you can see, I used my Charlotte fabric for the quilt.  I was thinking about writing a pattern, but I think I will skip that.  The math is too annoying.

 Karen also finished hers.  She sent me a picture as she is getting it ready to quilt:

 Brenda also finished her top - shown below:  Anyone else?

Another cool thing that happened is that Tara Lynn Baisden, of Quilter's Ridge, designed 5 little quilts using my Charlotte fabric.  We will do at least a couple of these in Sarah Club - but I think I am going to do them all!  Which ones do you like the best?

The last one - Little Bits - uses a lot of scraps, so it looked like a natural for Sarah Club.  Maybe somewhere down the line.  

So many things to do!  I had better get sewing!

One Day Closer to Spring.......

Hello Pieceful Quilters!

Well, this is my first post for 2019 - let's hope I do a little better this year!  I have been busy working on a bunch of things.  Some are for my classes and clubs, and some I am just trying to finish so that I can get them out of my sewing room.  I have so many projects that are almost finished, but just need a border or binding, or all the blocks are done, and they just need to be put together.  I have purged a lot of projects that I decided that I just didn't like enough to waste my time finishing, so now I am down to projects that I actually like!  A lot of them are Sarah Club projects, mostly from fabric or block exchanges.  I really love these scrappy projects, and I want to finish them.  My problem is that I can't just make a wall hanging or lap quilt, oh no - I have to make everything bigger.  So, I have tons of blocks that are done or started, and then they got put away to make room for the next project.  You all probably understand this - well, maybe not you people that don't start anything until you finish something.  Trust me - if you are a real quilter, you will get over that.  There is nothing more fun than going to the fabric store and picking out fabric for a new quilt project - or should I say, your next UFO?  Think of it this way - we could be hanging out at bars or the racetrack.  At least our obsession is safe and in many cases, we actually produce something special.  Did you know that studies have shown that quilters have lower blood pressure than other people the same age?  Winner!

Anyway - in Sarah Club we are doing our own version of Pam Buda's 1880 quilt, which I talked about in the last post.  We will talk more about it at our first neeting(s) January 29th or 30th,  January 29th also happens to be the day that the shop is doing the Circa 1880 Free Demos to explain how it will work for the general public.  You can go to one of those meetings if you wish, but keep in mind that there will be some differences if you are in Sarah Club.  If you want to get started on something before then, you can start cutting 1 1/2" strips.  I am cutting strips out of my scrap stash, and some snippets, that are mostly 10" and not much more, so that I can have a greater variety to turn in.  So, go through your scraps and cut 1 1/2" pieces off of anything you can. 

This month in Sarah Club we will reveal our finished (or whatever you have) Mini Fibonacci Mystery Medallion quilts.  If you missed Club last month, here is a picture of mine through border 3.

 I handed out the instructions for the fourth and final border, so if you didn't get one, you can pick one up at the shop, or just email me and I will email one back to you.  You still have a few weeks to finish before the reveal - and a couple of months to finish before our show in August.  Let's have a bunch in the show!

That's it for now!

After Later - Carrie

Sarah's Sewing Circle News

We have so many things going on this year, I thought maybe it would be a good idea to have a place where I can post things you should know - especially with the holidays and snowbird season upon us. 

This month we will be having TWO holiday gatherings.  You can come to either one or both.  I just ask that you let me know if you are planning to come to the evening group so that I can call ahead to make reservations.  

The Evening gathering will be Before our meeting on Tuesday.  We will start gathering at Galati's Hideaway in Cary around 5:00.  That should give us plenty of time to have a relaxed dinner and get to the shop by 7:30.  The Day gathering will be After our meeting - those that are interested will go to The Brunch Cafe in FRG for lunch.  Everybody pays for their own.

I have been working on getting a head start on the little Nine Patch blocks for Pam Buda's Circa 1880 quilt above. Right now, I am just making regular 9-P blocks with 1 1/2" strips - since I have a rather large collection of these. Once we get the template in, I will trim them down to the correct size. Making them bigger will assure that I end up with the correct size.  I know - it is kind of a lot to trim off, but doing it this way requires less thinking, and I do have a ton of 1 1/2" strips that are already cut.  Of course, you can make yours any way you choose - as long as they come out to the correct size.  

In case you were wondering why it will be more fun to do this quilt in Sarah Club.....

Besides the obvious - we have more fun in general, you will have the advantage of being able to choose your own blocks out of the bin we will have at the club meetings each month.  We will also be making the bonus quilts that use the same little blocks:

You should also be working on your Mini Mystery Fibonacci Medallion quilt.  There is just one more border to go, and we will reveal our quilts at our first meeting in January.  You are welcome to attend that meeting, even if you don't sign up - but why wouldn't you?  I finally finished my center block - why do I always go overboard???  I am hoping to get at least partially caught up before we meet next week.  

There is one more quilt in the Yuletide Greetings pattern.  I still have to quilt the last one I did, too.  I will try to have that done by next week, too.  Ok - it could happen.  You aren't holding your breath, are you?  There are a lot of flying geese in this one.....

I am always open to suggestions for quilts that you want to do next session - in our spare time!  I'm trying to come up with some simple and quick ideas!

After Later  -  Carrie

Civil War Samplings Block #8 & Sneak Preview of new fabric line

Hello Pieceful Quilters!

Below you will find Block #8 of my Civil War Samplings series.  We are just about to send out Block kit #20.  We always make a handful of extra kits, which are available at:
https://www.piecefulgathering.com/shop/Kits/Carries-Civil-War-Samplings-Kits.htm
Of course, if there is any fabric in the kits that you "need" more of, just give us a call, and we will be happy to send you some.
I do apologize for not keeping up with posting these as often as I had intended - trust me when I say that I am halfway to hell, if you know what I mean.  There just aren't enough hours in the day.
I have been working hard on my next fabric line with Penny Rose Fabrics.  It will be sort of a French inspired line.  A little outside of my box, but I hope you will all like it. Here is a sneak preview of the focus large print: 

This is the three proposed colors for this print, but you never know what is going to come out in the end.  I am still working on some of the coordinating prints - and I am very slow!  In between this I am cutting tumblers (join our Tumbler club and make a quilt....) and trying to keep up with my regular classes & clubs.  Oh  yeah, and I am semi-retired - lol!

So - here is Block #8, which was sent out in August of 2015:

I will try to do a better job of posting regularly!

Happy Quilting - Carrie

Civil War Samplings #7

Hello Pieceful Quilters!

Time flies - we are up to set #7 on the blog, and this week we will be sending out Samplings #19.  If you haven't signed up to get your own samplings, now would be a good time.  This month's set is really pretty!  Here is a sneak peek at the fabrics and blocks for Set 19:

And here is your copy of the newsletter and block instructions from Set 7:

 I hope you are enjoying these newsletters! 

Carrie

Civil War Samplings #6

Hello Pieceful Quilters!

Sorry, I got a couple of weeks behind in blog postings.  I took a week off for Quilt Market, and I am just getting caught up with my life!  Our Sampling Newsletters are up to April of 2015.  In case you are just tuning in, I am posting previous newsletters from my Civil War Samplings Clubs so that those that missed out can still do the blocks if you wish, and maybe get a little bit of history and news about quilting.  I will continue to post the newsletters here weekly (more or less) until we get caught up, and then we will see.  If you wish to join the club, now is a good time to do so, as I will be pulling fabric for the June Samplings in the next week or so.  Sign up on our Website, or call the shop (847) 516-7911.  Check out some of our other "Collector" Clubs, too.  Katie just started a new Good Wool Club, for those of you that want to build up your wool collection.  She is doing it every other month, like this one, and she will send you 8 wool 16ths and a free pattern.  The one pictured below is the first pattern.  Sign up for that club now - it will be mailing out shortly!  Good Wool Club

So, here is the Samplings newsletter.  The Churn Dash block is simple, and always one of my favorite blocks for a quick quilt. 

That's it for now.  Until next week - Happy Quilting!

Carrie

Civil War Samplings #5

Hello Pieceful Quilters,

We are up to Samplings number 5 already!  The real club is up to number 19 in June.  If you join now, you will get the fabric sets from here forward.  
Another challenge you might be interested in, if you enjoy Civil War history, is our Civil War Workbasket Challenge.  You just have to  purchase the basket from us (while they last) and you can join in the fun, and end up with something really cool!  I will put the guideline handout below the Samplings Handout.  Have fun!

And here are the contest guidelines:

Until next week - keep on quilting!

Carrie

Civil War Samplings Block # 4

Hello Pieceful Quilters! 

It looks like we are getting into the newsletters where I start to get carried away.  Sometimes I just can't stop!  I hope you are enjoying these newsletters, and the cute little blocks.  

Until next week - Happy Quilting!

Carrie

Civil War Samplings Block #3

Hello Pieceful Quilters!

Another block in the Civil War Samplings!  I love the Old Maid's Puzzle block, and it looks so cute in the 6" size.  Of course, any block looks cute when you make it that small.  I hope you are having fun with these blocks!

See you next week for block 4!

Happy Quilting,

Carrie

Civil War Samplings Block #2

Surprise!  I remembered to post this - 2 weeks in a row!  This week in the shop promises to be super busy and super fun!  Mostly, of course, because I think I will be there almost every day.  How did that happen?  I thought I was semi-retired!  Haha - as if....

Hope enjoy this past newsletter - you will find that as I go along, I manage to squeeze more and more on each page.  I just can't stop myself!

Happy Quilting,

Carrie

Civil War Samplings - Block #1

As I have spent the last couple of days - yes, days - laboring over the simple little newsletter that I will be sending out to a mere 28 people that are members of my Civil War Samplings Club, it occurred to me, that even though people might not want to receive the fabric every month, I bet they might enjoy the newsletter.

In case you are not familiar with the club, it consists of fifteen 10" fabric squares, that we call snippets, personally picked by me.  There is a new set every other month, on the even months.  I try to find fabrics that are from our newer Civil War lines, that coordinate with each other.  Included with the fabric kit is a newsletter with a pattern for a 6" block, which you can easily make from the fabrics in the kit.  I picture a couple of options for you, but you can do as you please.

This is one of our fabric collector clubs.  You can find all of these at:

Pieceful Gatherings Collector Clubs

 

 I will start from the first newsletter, but you should know that the fabrics pictured are most likely long gone.  If you want the current newsletters (and believe me, they get more involved and lengthy as I go along), you will have to sign up for the club.

As my first newsletter is more than a little light in information, let me give you this link to Womenfolk.com.  You will find this article interesting, and you can find a ton of great information on this website:   http://www.womenfolk.com/quilting_history/friendship.htm

So here is the meager info contained in the first Samplings pack:

I will post another newsletter/block every week until we get caught up.

Hope you enjoy this!

Carrie

Quilt Restoration & Repair - A Long and Crazy Journey with Carrie

Part 1 - How the quilts came to me, or "What was I thinking?"

Well, in spite of my good intentions, a year has flown by since my last post.  It seems that last year at this time we were heading off to Market and Diane's American Summer Quilt was going to be debuted.  Now, we are heading off to Market in about a month and Diane's American Crossroads quilt will be debuted.  My Americana II line will be arriving soon, but we got the shop kit last week, so she is working like crazy to finish it, so that it can be quilted and bound before Market.  Easy, huh?

Anyway, what inspired me to start up with my blog again is a project that I have been working on.   It started about a year ago - ok, maybe a little bit longer than a year - when a nice couple called to see about getting some antique quilts restored and completed.  My obsession with  antique quilts would not let me pass up the opportunity to at least look at the quilts, so they brought them in.

When I looked at them, I was kind of disappointed, there were five of them, two tied quilts and three tops.  Only two were really worth working on.  It always makes me feel bad to tell people that their precious family quilts aren't really worth anything, but I am a realist, and I collect antique quilts (mostly tops), so I am well aware of the market value of these quilts. There was a time, not all that long ago, when antique quilts were treasured and coveted, but since everyone and their mother has become more internet savvy, antique quilts have been falling out of attics and barns and landing on eBay.  It's the old story of supply and demand, and the supply is up.  Quilts from the Quilt Revival period, from around 1920-1940, are a glut on the market.  Its really sad to see some of these heirloom quilts sell on eBay for next to nothing.  I always tell people to put a label on them and keep them in the family.

In spite of my suggestion to the contrary, my customers decided that they really wanted to have these quilts repaired and/or completed.  I reluctantly agreed to give them an estimate.  I was sure that once I put a price on the job, they would change their minds.

My estimates were very honest, and ridiculously high, considering the condition of the quilts.  To my surprise (and, yes, dismay), they asked me to go ahead with the project.  Go figure.  I took pictures for my quotes, and you can see them below, with the names that I have given them, and a short description.  I thought that you might find it interesting, or just plain funny, to follow along as I work on these quilts - and sharing with you might help keep me on track!

So without further ado, here they are, in no particular order:

 

 Improved Nine-Patch Tied Quilt - Circa 1940 

Machine pieced and machine appliqued to border.

Condition – fair/poor

Nine-Patch on Point Top - Circa 1900

Variety of Indigo prints set with a single shirting  print,  hand pieced blocks set by machine. 

Condition – good, but bias edges are a problem.

Shirting blocks in one area are bleached (?) and need to be replaced.

 

Double Nine-Patch Sashed Quilt Top - Circa 1890

Hand pieced - some stains, holes in fabric, opened seams, shattered fabrics

Condition – Fair/poor

  

Irish Chain Quilt Top - Circa 1930

Hand and machine pieced

Condition – good

 

Squares and Shoo-Fly Tied Strip Quilt - Circa 1950

Machine pieced

Condition – poor

So, there you go - Five quilts &  tops in a wide variety of conditions.  I don't usually do quilt repairs myself, since I don't really have the time, and usually they can be easily handled by one of our talented quilters, but these quilts had some special issues, and nobody else wanted to do them.  

In case you wondered - I have not just been procrastinating for over a year.  The customer wanted the quilts  washed, so I started there.  Although they weren't horribly dirty, it seemed like a good idea.  I did take the two tied quilts apart first and got rid of the batting, which was mostly clumped up and yucky.  I was able to salvage one of the backs, or at least part of it, to possibly use for repairing the top.  The other back was in shreds, and I had to get rid of it.

Now the fun begins!  Stay tuned for the next installment.