Binding choices.....................

The search was on for the green/coral mottled batik for the binding of this table runner.  I found 1/4 yard of it.

I wasn't sure what I wanted for binding on this placemat.  I took it over by the shelves of brights, stripes, and novelty prints and decided yellow was just right for it.  The back of the placemat is orange with purple dots so this one will look good on that side too.

Since I'm keeping this one, I sewed the binding on all by machine.  It ended up having double batting in it. The first piece I cut was so thin that I added a second layer.  That made it quite thick so it will double as a hot mat in addition to being a placemat.

It isn't as crooked as it looks in the photo, it is just not laying flat here.

My white Peony is the most fragrant, has the strongest stems, and usually lasts longer in a bouquet than the other colors.  The last buds on the plant don't usually bloom, they just get rusty edges and never open.  I got this bouquet at just the perfect time.

 

Ditch quilting...................

I'm still cleaning and organizing so by evening I was ready to do some sewing.  I ditch quilted around the border and around the dark shapes on this one.

I used matching beige thread both top and bottom.

While cleaning off table tops I found this one that had its backing and batting with it so it got quilted too.  I just ditch quilted both sides of the black strips in each block.  This one is a small placemat size.

I used black thread on top and orange thread in the bobbin.  I'll get both of these trimmed today and choose some binding fabrics.

We have an air quality alert because of Canadian fire smoke drifting over our area now so I didn't spend any time outside.

 

Backings , cross seams....................

I took the easy route and made the backing out of the lavender Martha Negley print.  The other 2 fabrics would have been time consuming and I wasn't sure I would even like them pieced together. The backing is seamed and pressed and as soon as I cut the batting, it will all be ready for the longarmer.

I also chose the backing for the table runner.  It has some of the same colors that are in the top but will be interesting on it's own when the table runner is flipped over.

I spent an hour putting away fabrics in the basement, a long overdue task.

I finished sewing all of the rows on the Tilda triangle quilt.  I have enough of one of the light fabrics to add a narrow border.  I would lose too many points in the binding if I don't add a border.  I didn't measure it but it should be about 44" x 64" right now.  I also have the option of using up the ends of a lot of the fabrics and making a scrappy border.

I had a few Coleus plants left over so I got them into a pot a few days ago in time for our rain.  We only got 1/2" over a 12 hour period and are now officially in a drought area according to the ABC weatherman.

Lots of seams............................

I had a few sewing sessions yesterday, first finishing the 10 vertical seams between the columns and then sewing 8 cross seams out of 15.  One more day of sewing on this one.

I cut the border strips and sewed them onto the table runner top.

I'm still trying to come up with a backing for this quilt.  I have 5 1/4 yards of a matching print in lavender if I want to stay with Martha Negley fabric but not match colors front and back.  This would continue the soft pastel look.

I found a one yard piece of another print that I could possibly use with the 4 yard print on the right but it would definitely give a chopped up look to the back.  This one could become the next in line to be quilted if I could just make a decision. 

Border and layout................

I looked through my stash of batiks for more of the background fabric to make a border, but didn't find any.  I found this other batik that looks good with it.  The table runner top is about 12" x 36" right now so I think a 1" finished border will be enough. 

I got all of the Tilda squares up on the design wall yesterday afternoon.  You might notice there is a slight diagonal pattern of the fabrics.  I had 11 piles of 16 squares.  10 of them were all alike and 1 of them had 2 sets of 8 which I alternated.  I placed the 11 piles in what I thought was a pleasing arrangement and then, not knowing how high to start on the design wall, I started at the bottom of the first left column.  After I placed the first 11 in order, I started with #1 again until I had 16 pieces on the wall.  Then continuing on, in sequence I started at the bottom of the second column.  I continued until I had all of the pieces on the wall.  This offset each fabric up one space 2 columns over.  When the pieces were all up there, I just had to decide if I liked the regimented look or would fiddle with it into a random layout.  I decided I liked it and started sewing it together.  (This was probably more than you wanted to know about my process.)

In preparation for rain late tonight and into tomorrow, I added some fertilizer to the pots with tomato plants and filled the bird feeders.

Triangles.........again..............

Saturday night I cut the fabric for the third Tilda quilt into 4" triangles.  I know you can't see the thread, but these are all sewn, more sewing after I write this post.  This will be a small quilt, all triangles.

I cut one of the pink peonies with the yellow shaggy center and have it in a bud vase in my bathroom.  I have 2 plants of this variety but only one has bloomed so far.  That means I can have one new bloom in a bud vase for over a week, maybe 2 weeks.  I'll probably cut a new one every 3 days.

My current favorite Coral Bell is blooming.  I had 2 of them last year, and 2 plants died over the winter.  I think one of them was the other like this.  I won't buy any more plants, I'll just transplant something from another location.

This is another early Coral Bell bloomer.  The flowers are a little softer color than the other plant has.  This one is usually filled with blooms by the middle of summer.  There is a larger leaf Coral Bell behind this one with leaves that are green on the front and purple on the back.

My little yellow Coneflower plant is looking healthy this year and has the start of a bud.

I watered my tomato plants and gave them a new topping of compost yesterday morning.  This is the Early Girl variety and is growing fast.  Even that little 1/4" of rain we got last week perked up the plants.

The plants in the 5 pots are doing well too.  The three in the middle in the large pots are 4th of July variety, and the one on each end of the row in smaller pots are the Rutgers variety.

May 2025 monthly recap..................

 

I'll start my post with the only finished quilt for the month.  The top was finished in August of 2020 and it is the last of my large quilt tops from past years to be quilted (by longarmer Robin Diaz).

It is 61.5" x 76".  It has 6" and 4" Bow Tie blocks in it.

Next up are the two quilt tops finished about a week ago.  The one on the left is made with 7 Martha Negley older prints in the Economy block, 4 across, 5 down.  The pattern almost disappears as the blocks meet.  It is 69.5" x 85".

The one on the right is an adaptation of a Mary Ellen Hopkins layout in one of her books.  The fabrics are all Kaffe Fassett collective.  I used my new 8" die that Accuquilt calls the Signature shape for cutting layer cake pieces (10") of large prints.  It is 64.5" x 80".

Here is a collage that shows the progress from drawing to experimenting with design.  I was not at all sure it would come out good when I first started it.

I had two small project finishes.  The table runner on the left was started in September 2017 with some leftover pieces from an Australian fabric quilt.  It was finished yesterday.  It is 14" x 27.5".  The one on the right is a block from at least 10 years ago.  I finished another similar one last month and gave both of them to my daughter-in-law for her birthday.  It is 21" square.

I wanted to document the backing fabric on this post.  It is also an Australian fabric and so is the binding.

This is the new Peony bouquet I cut on Friday.  I forgot to cut one of the pink with fluffy yellow center for it.  I may just cut one of them for a bud vase.

The top view of peonies is the best view.