Step by Step

Looking back, it's been over ten days since I posted a finished courthouse steps quilt top on IG. About 64" square, I know it's busy, busy, with little space for the eye to rest, but I love it. For now, I'm calling it No Rest for the Weary.

Then I took time away to piece my Elate quilt top, which I'm glad I did, but that means I'm still plugging along on making a quilt back for the courthouse steps. Honestly, I chose a pretty slow route, starting by piecing together the scraps left from the puzzling of the quilt top, following my own prompt by making the center black and white. Then I kept building, first making and attaching scrappy warm sections....

and then the next steps were scrappy cool. Is it obvious that I'm making one big ole courthouse steps block for the back?? I hope so.

I'll continue on with another round of warm and cool, and since I'm super low on solid colored scraps by now, I think I'll go with big swaths of color. We'll see what I've got stashed to work with, but hoping to feel inspired to finish this back in the next few days.

Elate Quilt Top

So I dug into my fat-quarter bundle of Carolyn Friedlander's new Memento, and chose some fabric pairings for my ELATE quilt. I second-guessed myself a lot, but finally got serious about making blocks, and overall, I'm really happy with my fabric choices. 

The pattern consisted of three block styles, all 12.5" unfinished. They could be laid out horizontally, vertically, or mixed, but I went with horizontal, like the cover quilt I first saw and admired. I have some block trimmings that I'm planning on using as the beginnings of a pieced quilt back, but that'll have to wait, as I really need to get back to my Bee Sewcial courthouse steps quilt back first. But it feels good to have kept up with the quilt along thus far, and at least I have a top to show for it.

Kitchen Report | 4 Weeks

Week 3 of the kitchen remodel was productive - sheetrock, sheetrock, and more sheetrock - and so very dusty, in spite of the temporary sheeting that was hung. The final day of that week, which was when the crew did texturing, was the worst, but it definitely did improve the look of the space a lot. 

It felt like we were rewarded in week 4, with the cabinets arriving!

It took just three days for all of the cabinets to be installed, with a start on trim being added - see top of upper cabinets on left side, below.

Also in week 4, the flooring guy stopped by to see our existing hardwoods in person, and will drop wood for the kitchen flooring off on Monday. AND the countertop people came by to make their templates. Sounds like it'll be October 1 before they are back to install. So some major progress behind us, and more still ahead. As our contractor said, "every day from here on will be something new and exciting."

Next (Courthouse) Steps

Making a Bee Sewcial @beesewcial quilt is always a bit unexpected, and definitely challenging. After announcing my Courthouse Steps prompt back in June, I really didn't have an idea on how I'd put the blocks together. I just enjoyed the blocks my beemates sent me until late in July, I had them all, nine counting my own.

Early on, I planned on redoing my block, and rather than start from scratch, I cut into my original one and added to it.

And then I struggled to come up with a layout I really loved. So the blocks stared at me from the design wall for a few weeks until I came up with an idea, and made a bunch of white with black and black with white improv-pieced strips to use as filler. I pinned up several with the blocks and finally settled on a design. I wasn't 100% sure, and obviously, there were some complexities with block sizes, but I decided to begin piecing and see what happened. 

Below is the first block I tried, and I was happy enough with it to continue on.

As of yesterday, I have the four blocks in the upper right of the photo below all pieced together, plus the upper left block with its black and white strips, as well as the block in the lower right. And I'm liking it!

Though the blocks arrived to me at a variety of sizes, ranging 18.5" x 18.5" to 21" x 24", I'm trying to keep as much of each as I can. That's not to say I didn't trim a bit here and there, and I'm having to add to a few of the blocks as well. But I think I have a plan now that will work to fit all the blocks in, and that makes me very happy. Hopefully by the weekend, I'll be working on a quilt back.

Weave Got This! :: :: Blocks 9A + 9B

All it took was a simple request on our guild's private app, and September's pattern for our BOM was released a few days early. Of course I felt obligated (and eager) to jump right in.

I snuck back to my blocks several times over the long weekend, and before I knew it, I had the final blocks done!

Now to wait for October, when the layout of our 2026 BOM quilt is revealed! I'm looking forward to that very much, though I'll try and be more patient that I was this month. ha!

Elate Quilt Along

So it's finally time to cut into my Memento fat-quarter bundle, Carolyn Friedlander's new line with Ruby Star Society! As I mentioned in my August Fabric Usage post, I purchased a yard extra of some of my favorite prints, so ignore those at the bottom of the photo below. Totally didn't think of taking a picture of just the fat quarters!

But when I saw Carolyn's announcement that she was having an Elate quilt along featuring her Elate quilt pattern, I figured it would be a fun first thing to do with this delightful fabric. The pattern offers several sizes, and I'm going with the lap-sized Medium, 60" x 72", which uses 18 fat-quarters.

So I've already spent a little time sorting through the fabrics, and deciding what I want to pair with what. Of course that could change somewhat as I start getting blocks up on the design wall, but at least it's a start. And I did decide to do a test run of all three block styles, and I'm loving how they turned out.

And then I was able to squeeze in a few more blocks earlier this week, and hopefully can make a few more every day or so. At least they are pretty quick blocks to sew up.

So according to the qal schedule, September 3-16 we should be cutting and sewing blocks and sewing rows together. We'll see if that schedule works for me, but at least I've got a start.

Kitchen Report | 2 Weeks

After posting about our kitchen refresh, I got the impression that some of you at least, would be interested in following along with the progress. I'm still not sure if and when I'll post about it on IG, but I think I'll post occasionally here on the blog at least. 

All that to say, after two weeks, our kitchen has been gutted, one wall lowered + one removed, the ceiling removed, and the rebuilding has begun.

Initial electrical and plumbing were completed last week, as well as sheetrock put in place for the new ceiling. Back in 1978 when our house was built, a drop-down ceiling in the kitchen was a common fixture. Not so much now, so ours has been raised about 6" to match the area you can see in the photo below near the door. We're going to extend the kitchen just a bit on that one side, and I'm thinking that will be my baking station back there.

So far, so good. Of course it's different having workers in the house all day during the week, and lots of noises we aren't used to. We've set up a make-shift kitchen in our family room, and that's serving us pretty well. This week has been full of more sheetrock/finishing, and next week.... cabinets arrive!

Oh! And I am keeping up with the kitchen quilt blocks. I'm only working in three colors so far, and I've decided to keep track of what blocks I make when, not yet knowing if the resultant quilt will have the blocks grouped by color, progress, or whatever. Anyway, it's been a quick, fun little addition to my routine each day.

Low Volume + Scrappy Color

Last Friday, a new block drive was announced by Many Hands and Many Hearts, hosted by Cynthia Brunz @cynthiabrunzdesigns. The current drive is for 8.5" square blocks using a low volume print with a scrappy row of color across it, and will be open through November. I keep track of the drives by subscribing to Cynthia's newsletter, but you can also get info by emailing manyhandsandmanyhearts@gmail.com.

This quarter's blocks were the perfect thing to dive into over the weekend, when I really didn't have much time or focus to sew. I was surprised how little low-volume prints I had that would work, but considering I'm feeling like my plate is kind of full right now, I made up what I could, and have already sent them on their way. Hoping this contribution, though small, will be a nice addition to the quilts Many Hands and Many Hearts will be making this quarter.

August Fabric Usage

Sometimes, you happen upon fabric purchase opportunities that you didn't expect. It happened to me earlier this month when hubby and I escaped town for a few days. When I texted a friend that we'd be away, she wrote right back, "Be sure and stop at the quilt shop in Port Gamble." And so we did.

Once I saw that Quilted Strait carried several bolts of Windham Fabrics/Tara Faughnan's Handloom, I didn't really look at anything else. Without a specific project in mind, I just chose several colors I especially liked (l-r):

54870-20 Grape Leaves
54870-52 Driftwood
54870-14 Beach Day
54870-11 Persimmon
54870-6 Juicy

These wovens seem pretty luxe and are very soft. I'm anxious to find ways to include then in my work.

And then, there was a mini restock of solids for my kitchen quilt, and while I was online at Fabric Bubb, I grabbed a couple of fun prints as well, Strawberry in White by Heather Ross and Birds in Natural by Alexia Abegg of Ruby Star Society. I had no doubts I'll find the perfect uses for both. In fact, I already made a giftbag for my littlest granddaughter with the strawberries.

And then, of course, the Carolyn Friedlander Memento fat-quarter pack I'd pre-ordered ages ago arrived! Couldn't resist also grabbing a few yards of prints I especially like, just to stash (bottom-top stacked under the fq bundle):

• Ledger in Water Blue
• Ledger in Citron
• Alpha in Etheral
• Seagrapes in Neon Yellow
• Explore in Altitude

So yeah, that was a lot, but as you might have seen on my recent WIP List, I also have numerous quilt projects in the works, and I'm confident all of it will be well-used. I've already cut out what I need for the upcoming ELATE qal, so this month didn't really turn out too bad after all.

August Fabric Usage

Used up: 12.96 yards [11.44 projects + 1.52 recycled]
Brought in: 19.75 yards
Net: 6.79 yards

At the Table :: 2026 Rainy Day Bites Cookbook Club | May - August

Rainy Day Bites Cookbook Club has been embracing the Year of the Deep Dive, with our featured cookbook during this four-month sojourn cooking through Mediterranea: Life-perfected Recipes from Grandmothers of the Mediterranean by @anastasia_miari. Each month, we focused on a new chapter. Here's what I managed to make from this engaging book, every recipe inspired by a singular grandmother:

May challenge - SHARING

Margarita's Coca de Verduras (Mallorcan Vegetable Tart)

 Matilda's Krumpir Salata (Dalmatian Potato Salad)

June challenge - COMFORTING

Maryse's Courgette Gratin from Camargue

Chiara's Spaghetti all'Amatriciana

Italia's Patate Arragante (Napolese Oregano Baked Potatoes)

Maryse's Vinaigrette (Traditional French Salad Dressing)

July challenge - FEASTING

Franca's Lasagne

August challenge - TREATING

Turkish Walnut Biscuits

We'll continue baking from Baking & The Meaning of Life: How to Find Joy in 100 Recipes by Helen Goh @helen_goh_bakes through this entire year. Here are the recipes I tried during the last four months:

Potato, Garlic, & Rosemary Focaccia

Puttanesca Galette with Lemon Ricotta

Unfortunately, I didn't fit in a baking recipe for July and August, but I definitely enjoyed the two recipes I tried earlier in the spring and summer. Hopefully I'll get to try more in the months ahead.

plethora

It surprised me how much I enjoyed piecing together this scrappy purple quilt top. It turned out only 38" x 33", and though I rotated it around in every orientation, I really like the way I first created it on the design wall, though wider than tall is not my norm.

Happily, it's my sixth scrappy quilt finish of the summer, and apparently 'fits' for the QuiltCon 2027 American Patchwork + Quilting Pick-A-Color Scrappy Challenge. So that's cool! Might as well enter it and see what happens. No matter, I'm super happy with it, and happy to have found a good use for all those scraps.

Of course, a pieced quilt back was in order. I had a few scraps from making the front to start with, and needed just a few small pieces from stash to bring it up to size.

For quilting, I went with an uneven grid using Aurifil 50wt 5003 [Wine], 2515 [Light Orchid], 4225 [Eggplant] and 4020 [Fuchsia]. I also had a 40wt 2570 [Aubergine], and considering it was a heavier weight than the rest, I just stitched a few lines in each direction, specifically stitching over areas of Kona Raisin, the darkest fabric.

In fact, I used all five of those threads in both directions, often trying to 'match' them to the majority fabric in any one area. There were so many different fabrics used, though, that wasn't entirely possible. I think the multiple fabric and thread colors just add to the fun. A plethora, am I right?

Then, rather than a traditional binding, I went with a facing, using the Quilt Facing Tutorial by Audrey Esarey @cottonandbourbon. I really like the look of a facing on this particular quilt. Oh, and in trimming this quilt square, it shrunk just a tad, finishing at 38" x 33".

SO. Keeping it real here. Having this quilt finished has really encouraged me on. I find that what project I work on often depends on how much time or focus I have at a given time. So after machine-sewing the facing for plethora on Saturday afternoon, making a block for the Patchwork City project was a good next step forward. And Sunday morning, I was in the mood (yay!) to start remaking my block for my Bee Sewcial Courthouse Steps quilt, which I've been talking about doing for weeks. Hopefully I'll get back to that today, and move forward on that big project. AND today begins week two of our kitchen remodel, so I'll be back to making a block or few for the kitchen quilt each day. So at least I feel like I have some direction, and that's a good feeling for a Monday.

Linking up with Quiting JETgirl's Favorite Quilt Finish {August 2026}.

Linking up with Quilting & Learning's I Quilted This!

WIP List

My to-do list is suddenly out of control. I've mostly been progressing through one scrappy quilt after another over the summer, but this week I've added a couple of new quilt projects to my list. That AND I realized I had more WIPS than I thought. So let's see what all I've got going, ok?

1. The purple quilt, where quilting has just been completed and next I need to make and stitch on a facing. This one should be my next quilt finish, and relatively soon, so I'm feeling good about that.

2. I've received all of my Bee Sewcial @beesewcial blocks for my latest prompt! They are all up on the design wall, percolating, and I love them. A proper layout is next on the agenda, so mulling that one over. I'm thinking of possibly adding some more black and white, so I need to firm up some plans before moving ahead.

3. The Kitchen Quilt is brand new this week, and fortunately, I'll be working on its blocks over the next several weeks. So I'm feeling ok about taking my time with this one for now.

4. Oops! I'm joining the Elate QAL with Carolyn Friedlander @carolynfriedlander, which officially began today. I actually purchased the pattern and pre-ordered her new Memento fabric weeks ago, so it's been on my mind. The fabric is on it's way to me now, so my next task there is deciding which fat-quarter pairings I will use. There are 28 fat-quarters in the collection, and I only need 18 for the medium size quilt I'm planning to make.

5. Up to date on the BOM with Seattle MQG, there will be one more set of blocks to make in September, then I assume we'll get the layout instructions in October. So if I follow instructions as they arrive, I shouldn't have to get serious about a quilt top for a while.

6. The Inspired by Nature workshop I took with Vicky Conley @vicki_conley_are_and_design last month was great, though I wasn't totally happy with my result. So it'll take some focus to take a fresh look at it and move forward, and it's TBD what I decide about all that.

7. Remember the Patchwork City quilt blocks I was hoping to continue with the Tula Pink fabric I got off the free table at a guild meeting? Well I've only made one 'new' block so far, and though I do want to continue, I feel like that project will take some real focus too. It's a mix of pieced and paper-pieced blocks, and will probably continue on the back burner for a while.

Yikes! How did that even happen? I very rarely have a quilt WIP list this long. But I don't feel too bad about it, knowing my scrap basket it almost empty from all the scrappy quilts I've made lately, but it does feel a tad overwhelming, yes. Especially since I was hoping to make at least one more scrap quilt with what's left in the scrap basket, and I was hoping to take a fabric printing class and make something with my own printed fabric, just to try something new. So we'll see how it goes. #1 is top priority, and I fully intend to get serious about #2 and #4 next; then #3 and #5 over the next couple of months as I get the info I need. That doesn't sound too impossible, does it?