Happy Easter and a Quilty Update

Happy Easter everyone!  I hope you all have a very blessed day.  Here in Kentucky, we're having a very quiet day in the wake of Covid-19 and social distancing.  I listened to a service on the radio while I worked on some sewing.  The family has exchanged good tidings and photos of grandchildren  celebrating Easter in their own quiet way this year.  Usually we have a big, rowdy get-together with everyone after church with a big egg hunt and an even bigger dinner and games.Maybe next year.   I hope you have a lovely Easter in your own way, too.

In sewing news, I took last week off as sewcation.  It was supposed to be camping, but they shut down where we were planning to go, so we stayed home.  Hubs has been home for 6 weeks now (he's a high school teacher) so it pleased him to have company for a while.

Friendship Stars Quilt:

 This is finally finished.  I just quilted in the ditch, nothing fancy on this one.  I just wanted to get it done, it had been lingering around so long.  Sorry for the awful couch picture, but it's raining here so no pretty outdoor shot.  

Pat Sloan's "Stay at Home" Quilt along:                                                                                                            

Pat Sloan is hosting a Quilt Along for the month of April.  It's a simple snowball block with sashing and cornerstones.  She's using novelty prints for hers, and doing the sashing as she goes.   I'm using red and blue blocks, solid red cornerstones, and white sashing for mine.  Very patriotic.  I'm using a variety of  red prints so I'm assembling all the blocks first, then I'll so the sashing.  By sewing 2 blocks a day, I keep up easily and will still have time before the end of the month to do the sashings.  

"Pocket of Tonals" quilt kit:     

I got this kit a few months ago from Connecting Threads.  This is what the finished product is supposed to look like:

                                                         

I'm making good progress now, doing 2 blocks a day.  Here's what I've got going so far:                      

I've only got 4 more blocks to do then things will go slower with the tiny piecing of the sashings.

I'm quite pleased with the progress so far and just love the colors.  

                       

Now don't think I've forgotten to do any garment sewing.  I have a Vogue top and a duster to share with you.

Enjoy your Easter and I hope you get to sew today, too.

Arrgg!! Computers! and Simplicity 4074

You know the old saying about men...Can't live with them, can't live without them.  Well, I feel that way about my computer.  The contrary beast decided to crash last month.  After 5 weeks in computer hospital, they're slow but so very good, it has a new hard drive and is back to normal.  At last.  There's a limit to what these fumbly fingers can do on the phone, and writing posts is not one of them.  It's back now and running brilliantly. Hubs and I are very happyto have it back. On to sewing.

I visited Simplicity 4074 again.

I just love this skirt pattern.  It's for knits, is a 6-gore skirt with just the right amount of flair at the knee to be kicky and fun.  It's the third time I've made it and I love each version.  

This time I made it from a brushed poly/spandex from Fabric Mart in a gorgeous paisley print.  As you can see, it goes beautifully with my golden Simplity 8982 top.  Funny thing is, I bought this fabric thinking I would make this top from it.  After I got it, it told me it wanted to be a skirt instead.  

I did change the waistband on this one.  Instead of using a traditional elastic casing, I serged the elastic to the top of the waist, then turned it down and stitched it down at the side seans for a smoother more RTW finish.  I really like how it turned out.  The fabric was too light for my usual Knit'n Fuse tape hem treatment. So I used my machine's walking foot and the hem came out beautifully--no waves at all.  

I'm trying to sew more, but find I'm often too exhausted by work to sew.  I'm deemed an essential worker being a pharmacy tech.  We are a 24 hour pharmacy, so we're all working more hours during this time of pandemic and panic. There are so many sew-a-longs and quilt-a-longs going on now.  I'd love to participate in so many of them but I just don't have the time.  I am participating in Pat Sloan's quilt along for the month of April.  It's just a block a day and is an easy block at that so I feel I can keep up with that one.  I'm going with a red, white, and blue theme. 

What about you?  How are you spending your quarantine time?  Are you participating in a sew along, sewing on your own or has inertia struck at the this great disturbance to your routine?