Quilts for Vets of Wayne County, TN - part 5

Today we had a special quilt presentation for the first friend I met when we moved to Wayne County, TN.

Captain Robert Rains. We met when I went to volunteer at the Historian's Office. He is the county's Historian.

Bob is on the left - his son is in the red shirt.

Bob has recently been diagnosed with aggressive bladder cancer. He is off to Vanderbilt hospital in Nashville to see what his options are. He is 87 and served in the Korean War. Update - the doctors said he is in great shop and if he agrees to the treatments they will operate. Haven't heard if he is going to take the chemo treatments.

The presentation was a surprise with lots of friends and family in attendance.

Bob did tell me that he didn't want or expect a Vet quilt since I had given him a quilt the year before when he was in the hospital with pneumonia.  I felt that I couldn't be the one to instigate the presentation so I turned it over to my friend Anne.

Bob has lived his whole life in Wayne County, except during the war and when he went to Memphis to the university.

He was a teacher, coach, principal. Most people call him Mr. Rains or Coach Rains as that is what they grew up calling him. I am so blessed to know him as Bob, my friend.

This quilt was a group project. I cut out the kit, my friend Lavonne pieced it, I quilted it and Anne put on the binding. I think this is my favorite quilt we have made so far and I was saving it to present to Bob at the Veteran's Day celebration.

 We only have about 5 tops left to make so the end is in sight. 

Quilts For Vets of Wayne County, TN

Here are quilts # 24 and # 25 and they are completely finished which includes being washed and dried!!!  I think we could have 11 quilts waiting to be quilted and bound. We are doing really well.

This quilt pattern is called Tortilla Strips by Atkinson Designs. I can't remember where I first saw this pattern and I realized it would be perfect for the bits of leftover strips from other quilts. Only hope there will be a Korean Vet who loves the modern look of this one

I really like that the star points are only around the center part of the blocks. Something a bit different. These quilts were a group effort - I pieced them, Anne quilted them and Rubye did the bindings.

If the quilts look wonky it is because I have blocks pinned underneath to the wall so they are making the quilt poof out a bit.

We had a group sew day and 6 ladies showed up to help piece a quilt top.

They sewed for three hours and made 56 blocks

When I cut out the pieces I made the last round one inch bigger than needed so I could square up the blocks all to the same size. I did get it made into a top and it is in the pile waiting to be quilted.

Alycia's QOV Mystery - Clue # 1

Just a reminder of the fabrics I am using

Clue one is complete all the pieces are cut out and the required blocks are sewn.

So far so good.

Linking up to Alycia's blog

Alycia's QOV Mystery - Vet Quilts

I am going to try to keep up with Alycia's new QOV mystery. She promises a easy quilt.

Here are my fabric choices...Alycia - let me know if any of my choices need to be changed. 

Two more Quilts for Vets of Wayne County are finished.  These I made before we started getting donations for fabrics and that means I can count this fabric as used.

Can't remember where this pattern came from.  I remember having to make it bigger than the pattern called for. Love the cascading stars. The background is a light blue.

I took a class for this quilt and I made mine for a QOV.

The town we do most of our shopping in is Florence, AL. It is about an hour away. It has Lowes, Harbor Freight, Dillards, Bed Bath & Beyond, Petco,  Joanns, Hobby Lobby. On the way to Florence we drive about 30 minutes on Natchez Trace. We picked up two turtle about 1/2 mile apart.

I remembered to count their rings. The one on the left is half the size of the one on the right. Their markings are so cool. They are both males. The one on the left has 11 rings (11 years old) and the one on the right has between 23-25 (23-25 years old). The one on the left is one of the smallest turtles we have found since moving here. Looking forward to finding a turtle with 40+ rings. 

Total fabric used since January - 159 yards

Total fabric purchased since January abt 21 yards.

Quilts for Vets of Wayne County, TN - part 4

Just a reminder that our small group of quilters (7 total and 4 are new to quilting) are making 50 quilts for the Korean Vets in our county to be given out on Veterans Day in November 2017.

When we started this my friend Anne was positive that she could get her quilt guild to participate plus other sewers she knew. Neither of those groups wanted to join us. I put an ad in the paper and 4 ladies who have never sewn before answered the call. Between Anne and myself we came up with enough machines for them to use. I made a bunch of kits for them to make, but for some reason I'm struggling with teaching them the basics. Not sure if it is my teaching or what. I am pretty patient. After the first two sew days when I brought home their blocks that had to be unstitched and re-sewn, we started making string blocks which they excelled at. They can now mark and sew on the lines for 1/2 sq triangles. Another gal joined our group and she quilts and has offered to do the bindings. I am so grateful that she came along. 

All our quilts are simple and quick to make. We are putting on the binding by machine.

This one is the 20th quilt that we have 100% finished .  The offset squares are fun.

#21 finished - I am sure that this pattern has a name but I have no idea what it is. It is made with 2.5 inch squares and strips. The white center is 4.5 inches sq. A good use of scraps.

This turtle just missed getting squished by a logging truck. I hope she likes her new home.

These turtles that I rescue are Eastern Box Turtles. They are the state reptile of Tennessee. The bottom of their shells are hinged so they are able to completely close their front and rear openings. They can live up to 60+ years ( if they don't get squished or eaten by skunks, raccoons, mink). They are about 6-7 inches in length when fully grown. The bottom of the shell is flat on the females and concave on the males. They only mate when they accidentally run into each other. You are suppose to be able to count the rings on their shells to determine their age - just like a tree. I've never taken the time to do that. Maybe with the next one.

Quilts for Vets of Wayne County, TN - part 3

I was able to get 3 Vet quilts finished this week.  I can't count the yardage for these as the fabric was bought with donations.

I used 2.5 inch strips for this quilt, the blocks are 12 inches finished. I used red flannel on the back.

 All the quilts are being washed as I'm not sure that our older Vets will know how to wash their quilt. Plus I worry about the reds bleeding into the lighter fabrics.

Love making floating stars as there is no chance of cutting off the star points.

I think our group of beginner quilters will be focusing more on 1/2 sq triangle quilts as they are getting pretty good at marking and stitching on the lines. Not so much at squaring up the blocks so I will continue doing that. They are all expert pressers! And for some unexplainable reason I cannot get them to do a constant 1/4 inch seam.  I think once the pressure of these 50 Vet quilts are behind us I will be giving them beginning lessons and will be able to spend more time on the basics.

This next quilt was made with the 1/2 sq triangles made by the group. I think it turned out pretty good. 60x70

I'm gonna leave you with a picture of our Sweet Ruby - she is now 3 years old. She is the best dog for me, very obedient, easy to train.

1st "Quilts For Vets" Quilt Show

This post is about our 1st "Quilts For Vets" Quilt Show. 

The quilt show will be held on September 23rd, from 10-2 and will outside at The Fabrik Emporium in Waynesboro, TN.

 Anne, who owns the shop, has been working very hard to getting the publicity we need to make this quilt show a success. 

Fabric will be on sale for $5, $7, and $9 (108" wide backing) a yard on the day of the show.

Our goal for the show is 50 quilts! 

Last year after our Veteran's Day presentation we had folks say they wished we had held up each quilt as they wanted to see them. Because of these requests we have decided to have a quilt show on September 23rd. We will have our 50 quilts on display. We have a representative coming from our Senator's office, haven't heard back from other officials as yet. A local band has offered to provide live music. Some businesses in town and others have asked to put up booths to sell their products.  The local FUDGE maker will also be there! He has over 25 kinds of fudge and is preparing a "fudge recipe booklet" to sell. Most of the charities in the county will be there to hand out  information for their groups. White beans and cornbread will be served to benefit one of our local charities. White beans are always served at functions in our county. Fried pies will also be available.

We also have a opportunity ("free-will" donation) quilt we will be giving away at the end of the show. The quilt is 100 inches square. The bottom of the quilt shows the backing.

 All monies raised will be used to purchase fabric and batting to make Vet quilts. The first event we took the quilt to was the Garden Show and we made $187! Never dreamed we would get that much in just 4 hours. The quilt is currently making it's way to all the banks in our small town.


Wayne County, TN is about two hours southwest of Nashville.