Grandma Scholten and her chickens

My neighbor, Steve Johnson gave me this wonderful painting of my grandmother. I knew he had been painting industrial type things, and gave him some photographs of farm scenes with machinery to look at. I was so happy to see this little (5 by 7) painting--it is framed and by my front door, so I see it as I leave and enter the house.
Grandma Hillegen "Ella" Scholten is known to us only in stories. She died in 1948 on the same day her second grandchild was born. There came to be 26 grandchildren. From all accounts, she was a gentle, unassuming woman with a subtle sense of humor.
Read Steve's take on this painting at
http://slimjohnsonpaints.blogspot.com

spliced log cabin

Mary and Eleonore, in my small group, have been making spliced log cabins--where you splice together the fabrics, pay no attention to keeping one side light and one side dark, and just keep sewing.
I like the subtle internal diagonals the splices give the quilt.
I used a basket full of plaid (of course) scraps and really like the results. My logs are cut 1 1/2 inches, finished blocks are 8 inches.

mom

Judy encourages us to use stash this month in a quilt for/inspired by our mothers.
My mom, (who reads my blog, so I must be careful here) is a wonderful seamstress. She made most of our clothes when we were growing up, including our wedding dresses. She saves her scraps, and kept very special ones in one box.
For her 70th birthday, I asked for access to these sacred scraps. She was reluctant to let me near them, but I took just 2" by 12" of each. I used a Fons and Porter floral pattern, and I think it turned out beautifully.
My sister took the tiny waste triangles and made a legend to tell where each fabric was from.
Mom loves the quilt, but is still not very happy that I cut into these scraps.
Mom, note almost 8 years have passed and you haven't made anything else from this box yet.
You know you can find several sacred stashes of mine that I haven't touched and cut into them!

Donna's pattern

My friend Donna has been playing with optical illusions in her quilts and has developed a pattern. I am honored she asked me to test the pattern, and am thrilled with my results. The tiniest square in these quilts is 1/4 inch finished. I love how they turned out, and the whole family has claimed the pillow. I made a mistake in the red quilt, that is why it is off centered. I like it that way. And I like how the paisley cut apart.
Contact Donna at donnainchicago@netscape.net for information on purchasing a copy of her pattern.