The table runner...............

I knew there were several rust color Nancy Crow fabrics that might work for the binding and this one is the winner.

It took over 2 hours to hand finish the binding last night.  I pieced the Hunter Star blocks in October 2014 and sewed them end to end for this table runner.  I have had the batting cut for it for several years.  Some things just don't take priority and this was one of them.  It is 12" x 35.5".

The backing is the remainder of a fabric I used for a quilt back many years ago.

I mentioned earlier that the pieces were all cut from one Nancy Crow ombre fabric.  Here is a piece in another color range so you can see what I was working with.

We got a little over 3/4" of rain in the daylight hours yesterday.  More rain was supposed to come overnight so I'll check the rain gauge this morning.

Trimming and ditch quilting..................

This quilt came home from the longarmer yesterday and I got it trimmed last night.  I'll choose binding today.

I chose the thread to quilt the Hunter Star table runner.  All of the fabrics in the runner are from one fabric, an ombre print by Nancy Crow.

With two TV shows to watch last night, I finished the ditch quilting on the table runner.  I'll trim it today and choose its binding.

Rain expected today in 2 waves.  I hope we get more than we got 2 days ago which was only a few hundredths of an inch in the rain gauge.

Prepping for quilting.............

It was time to prep two more quilts to be sent out for quilting.  This quilt top is only 53.5" wide so this 58" black and white fabric is sufficient for the back.  It was nice to not have to piece a backing.

I had already searched through the Wishwell Weather Report fabric and found 2 pieces that would work for the back.  The apricot is full width and the green is about 14" wide for this backing.  Batting was cut for both quilts and then I turned on the iron and pressed the 2 backings.

I knew I had already cut the black strips that will border all of the placemats.  It didn't take long to find it and I think I have enough cut for all of the projects.  Now I just need to get busy.

 

First quilt top for March 2026..................

I love it when I can take a bunch of parts laying around and make a quilt top.  For this one I just needed to make 2 more flannel 16 patch blocks.  There was a box of squares and rectangles that make up the scrappy border.  It is approximately 48" x 72", close to the 50" x 70" size I like for throw quilts.  Most of these flannels are from the 1990s when the browns were very popular.

I decided to put these blocks and sewn panels up on the design wall.  The last time I had them out was 6 1/2 years ago.  I have totally lost interest in making these into a quilt.  My daughter-in-law wants a table runner the length of her table and I need to measure it to see if a column of this quilt will work.  I can see making placemats out of the loose blocks, 3 to a placemat.  They would end up about 14" x 20".

This is a picture of the pattern.  It was fun making the blocks in 2013 but once the assembly started, I lost interest in it.  I have other things planned, fun things, so I want to salvage these blocks in other projects and move on.

I pulled out a ball of cotton yarn a few days ago and started this dishcloth.  I couldn't tell from looking at the ball what the colors were.  It is a very subtle change between the 4 colors.  This was a newer ball of yarn, and I had been reading the reviews online by previous buyers.  Several of them mentioned the yarn wasn't soft any more.  I had to agree with them on this one, but in reality, a little stiffer yarn is perfect for washing dishes.

Flannel progress..............

I made some decisions since my last post on this flannel quilt.  I took out the darkest of the rectangles in the border but didn't have enough medium values already cut.  Instead I took the stack of squares that were in the box and sewed some pairs together and inserted them between each set of 2 rectangles.   I finalized the design after sewing 2 more blocks and got the top half sewn together and part of the bottom sewn after I took this photo (which is missing the bottom row of rectangles and squares in the photo).

A third bud appeared on the Amaryllis so I have 3 blooms on the second stalk.  I have a few buds on more of my cacti and one started opening yesterday, another of the white with pink edges.

While I was in the basement I pulled some fun Philip Jacobs and Brandon Mably prints.  No plan for them, just playing with my stash.
  

 

Play day on the first day of the month.................

I usually don't get started working on anything the first day of the new month, but yesterday I got busy.  First I found a backing for this table runner which I pieced several years ago.  I think it is the first project I made when I got the Hunter Star cutting die.

I decided to have a little fun looking through a collection of fabrics that I bought several years ago.  It is all Kathy Doughty fabric.  I have a couple of Kathy's books and have made a few quilts from one of them and one quilt from another one.

But...that wasn't all of them.  Here are a few more pieces that will work with the large bird prints.

And there are more......

Last night I decided to take the flannel 16 patches and put them on the design wall.  I have 38 blocks so there are 3 more on my table.  I need to make 2 more for another row.  My plan is to use the rectangles and squares as a border.  I think I'm going to remove the very darkest ones and use only the medium tones.

February 2026 monthly recap.................

Three finishes, one large, two small.  Purple Rosy joins Green Rosy on the finished quilts pile.  It is a Kaffe Fassett pattern in several of his books and I followed the pattern loosely, making my own version of it.  It is 65" x 82".  

The other two are baby quilts to add to my selection for parents and grandparents to choose from.  In the center is a quilt made from a pile of blocks using leftovers from another quilt and a large print.  It is 32" x 34.5", perfect for tummy time for a baby.  On the right is an original design quilt started in a workshop in 1991.  It is 29.5" x 37".

Two new tops were constructed.  On the left, Double 4 patch blocks made from batik strips that were cut many years ago paired with 16 patch blocks from the batik orphan block box.  It is 64" x 72".  On the right, the diamond quilt made from Wishwell Weather Report fabric was a smaller top that I increased by adding a column of blocks on each side and 2 rows across the top.  It's a much better size now at 48" x 72".

I didn't get any table runners made but did knit four dishcloths.  Two of them are smaller because there wasn't much yarn left on the balls.  I had to add a white corner to the blue variegated one because I misjudged when to start the decrease rows.  I can get 2 dishcloths from one ball of Sugar 'n Cream yarn most of the time, but even though they say they all have the same number of yards, some definitely have less yarn on them.

Now I need to add my stats for this quilt to my blog.  The colorful blocks are made from leftovers from another quilt, and they waited patiently in a drawer for many years.  I thought I was going to make them into mug rugs, but I didn't need any more of them, so the blocks waited.  The large print was an impulse buy on sale and it works so perfectly with these blocks.

The back is another impulse buy on sale and has always been a favorite but I never could figure out what to make with it.  I think it compliments the front of the quilt.  Black and white seemed the right choice for binding.  It is 32" x 34.5" and has Hobbs 80/20 batting in it.  I quilted it on my Pfaff 7570.

I decided I needed a photo of the full back of this quilt since it will leave my house and go to a baby at some point.