Category: Spring

An Easter Bunny Tote Bag

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A friend sent my daughter and me really cute wall hangings made from a towel and washcloth.

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We wanted to make something for her and collaborated on a large tote bag.  My daughter did her great embroidery on an 8 inch center panel …

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…and I used my favorite quilt block to frame a picture – 4-½ inch log cabin blocks (1-½ inch center and 1 inch strips).
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I used the same pretty pink calico in the blocks and for the backing and lining.
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Pale green check seems to go with pink so well and serves as an accent on the bag.

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This is a roomy 16 x 20 inch tote and I hope will be used to transport a lot of good stuff.

Click on pictures to enlarge.

Recycling Old Lace Curtains

When we moved into this house 11 years ago, the previous owners had left behind three lace panel curtains.  They were too pretty to get rid of but I really had no use for them and they have been hanging in a closet since 2001.  Yesterday, I finally decided to do something with the panels and made new curtains for my kitchen windows.  I needed bottom panels and valance for the window over my sink and three valances for the bay window area.

I was able to make use of the pretty bottom edging on the panels for the window over the sink ….

…and cut all the valances sideways to be able to use the pretty side edging for the bottoms.

I took down venetian blinds to make the kitchen brighter and more open.  Although I’ll be replacing the lace curtains with heavier ones in the fall, I don’t think the blinds are ever going back up.

Mini-Quilts Inspired by a 1940s Tally Card

I have always loved the use of Scotties in 1930s-40s designs and have a large collection of all sorts of things.  Among the items I collect are tally cards from that era and I found a really nice one for only 25 cents at an antique mall recently.  I thought the design would work well as a fused applique for my mini-quilt rack.  The card measures about 3×3 inches and the little spot above the man’s hat is a tiny ink blot on the card.

Update:  I’ve had a few questions about what a tally card is.  In the 1930s-40s, card games in the home were very popular, especially bridge for the ladies (followed by a light lunch and a rich dessert). Hostesses liked to provide cute tally cards which were kept as souvenirs.

I scanned the card and printed it out in a 6×6 inch size, leaving ¼ inch borders for the seam.   I flipped the picture when printing so it would face in the same direction as the original card when appliquéd.  I like Lite Steam-a-Seam 2 sheets for fusing.

On my first version of the piece, I omitted the gentleman and added another tree.  The pieces were fused onto a pale peach 6-½ x 6-½ inch background and secured with a zigzag stitch using invisible thread.  I used a fine line permanent marker to add a few of the features such as the bark on the tree and the dog leash.

Then, I added fabric to finish out the piece and border to measure approximately 12 x 15 inches.

I liked the piece, but it didn’t have the airy spring look that I wanted, so I made another fused center, this time keeping the gentleman and changing the position of the tree.

I used 3-½ inch blocks called Right and Left from my Electric Quilt software  to complete the quilt.  This time, it had the springtime appearance I wanted.

I’ll have to look through my collection to see if there are any more designs I can use for my mini-quilts.

Time for Easter in my April Kitchen

I’m lucky to have a lot of display areas in my kitchen.  I have one large primitive shelf…

…four window sills…


…two small corner shelves ….

…and a small decorative cabinet.

There’s a place to hang a handmade bunny dishtowel….

…and to display a 1970s cottage cheese container.  Yes, we did love our shades of orange back in the ‘70s.

One item I’m going to be displaying for all of the Easters to come is this wonderful spring-like picture of my youngest granddaughter.  The pink is just so perfect.

Small Finds at the Antique Store

Back in January, Susan Branch had a post about some darling bird salt and pepper shakers she had found while antiquing.  Click on the link below to see her post.

http://www.susanbranch.com/2012/01/la-de-daa-%E2%99%AB-perfect-cake-baking-weather/

Probably every one of her readers wished she had some cute little bird salt and peppers.  Yesterday, my daughter and I were browsing through one of our favorite shops, Covered Bridge Antiques in Mt. Healthy (a suburb of Cincinnati).  Guess what I saw on a shelf at a very reasonable price?

They are about 2-3/4 inches tall, are marked “Japan” on the bottom and have holes with cork inserts.  They are just perfect for spring.

I also found this precious glass basket which is 3-1/2 inches tall, including the handle.

This piece is going to be filled with something sweet and included in an Easter package to a special friend.

It was a good day at Covered Bridge Antiques.