Category Archives: Quilt Stash

Tote Bag Fun

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I have slowly getting a tote bag ready for a tote bag swap I joined in one of the Facebook groups I belong to.  The only requirements are that it be at least 14″ wide.  The coordinator of the swap asked each of the swap members what colors they would like.  She used that single parameter to choose what colors we were to make our tote bags for each secret recipient.

Let me interject here that the colors I was given were completely out of my comfort zone and I did not have at least one of the fabrics that I was given.  Off I go to the quilt shop last year and picked up a fat quarter of the fabric color my secret tote bag recipient requested…and I found a really cool braided handle to put with my tote bag.  Except when I got the lovely handle out to get ready to put it on the tote bag, I realized it was WAY too thick to not only sew through…I was also afraid that it would be something I was uncomfortable putting on a gifted project because of its thickness.

Off to the craft store today, to find a bit more fabric for the inside of the tote bag because I did not have any of that color in my stash, and to look for a better option for the tote bag handles.  I found success in both the interior fabric and the handles!

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And as I was making the tote bag, I made darned sure I had reinforced ALL of the seams.  If you are going to have a tote bag that is at least 14″ wide, it would most likely be used to carry heavier things and I wanted to be sure that the tote bag can stand up to that.

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I have enjoyed this secret swap project…and now we wait to find out who our secret tote bag swapper is so I can send her the tote bag with her chosen colors!

The Quilted Beauty of 116 Quilts

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I stepped into our church yesterday to view the fruits of the labor of the wonderful church ladies who made 116 quilts for Lutheran World Relief.  You may remember how excited they were when I delivered a boatload of fabric to them.  I cannot tell how many quilts were made from the fabrics that were donated by the quilters I know…but, there is pure quilted beauty in the display of their efforts before they ship the quilts off.  Behold…

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Filling up my Stash

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Linda at AbbiMays.com sent me 20 pounds of fabric for our church’s Lutheran World Relief quilt-a-thon:

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I had to rescue some of the fabric for my stash as it was too lovely or fun for me to pass up O:) – but never fear, the church ladies were still very appreciated of the box of fabric that I AbbiMays.com had sent to them!  And I am truly running out of room in my one-butt sewing room for more stash fabric!

Even if you do not need stash fabric, do you still purchase something that is too lovely to pass up?

Charity Quilt-a-Thon

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The wonderful and tireless ladies at our home church began their two-week Lutheran World Relief (LWR) quilting today…and they will quilt for two solid weeks.  Many of them will be at the church from early in the morning until late at night.  ALL of them are dedicated to a worthwhile cause and our church is always so (sew?) pretty when their two-week LWR quilt-a-thon is finished as they hang all of the quilts over the pews, the communion rails and anywhere else they can find to hang them so the congregation can enjoy their beautiful colors before they are boxed up and sent to their new home.

I have never been able to join them while they quilt.  First it was because I was the main breadwinner in our family and then, once I was diagnosed with MS, there is no way I can handle the hustle and bustle, chaos, movements and noises from the group.  So, I felt compelled to help in SOME way that would not affect an exacerbation of my MS symptoms.

I decided I could donate fabric to the cause!  I already had one LWR quilt sewn but had lost it in my sewing room and recently uncovered it so that went into my donation box along with some fabrics.  Then, my MIL was going to our little town’s quilt group a few weeks ago and she mentioned my request to the ladies in the group.  And, as with most things that have meaning and quilted hearts – the word spread like wildfire and the next thing you know is I had over 200 yards of fabric for our home church LWR ladies!

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Donated fabric filled up the back end of my Suburban.

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A few of our church quilt ladies and one of the men who helps his wife.

ALL of the ladies were very appreciative of the donations – downright GIDDY, actually!  And I was happy that I could do what little I did to help them along in their LWR quilt-a-thon journey.

Quilting Scarves?

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My MIL gave my middle daughter these two bags of scarves:

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I have been too busy to open them up and see what is actually there, but in my spare time (cough, choke), I want to dive into the bags and see what I can see.  I may just make a scarf quilt using muslin as the foundation.

Have any of YOU made a quilt out of scarves?  If so, please share your experiences with me!