Vacation finishes

 So we went on another little vacation, which, if you’ve been following, means three more finished placemats for Meals on Wheels. Slowly, slowly, all those Bear Paws I made in 2020 are getting used. There is a part of me that really wants to make a bigger quilt, but this feels like a worthwhile project, so I may finish before starting on something else. Also the holidays are coming up, which means I have other things to keep me busy, and small projects may be best. 

Anyway, let’s get to the placemats and then some autumn photos from our little trip. I made all of the placemats before we left on vacation and did the hand sewing on the bindings in the evenings in our cabin. As usual, the placemats are all 14 by 18 inches, pieced on my Featherweight and quilted on my Singer 115 treadle. The blocks I chose as starting points for this round were nature related: water and wildflowers and other plants—the sorts of things we like on our vacations. I found some 2 1/2 inch squares to go with the watery Bear Paws for the first placemat, and supplemented them with strips. I sewed columns of random scraps for the back. A quick stipple for quilting and some leftover Grunge for binding made a fun finish.

I found more squares and strips to supplement the blocks for the front of the second placemat and used cut-offs from old backings to make the back. I had a fat quarter of fabric with various blue stripes that with some fussy cutting and piecing made my favorite binding of the three. 

 Now, you might not think that the third placemat looks like anything inspired by nature. I certainly didn’t. Until we came across a plant during a hike on our previous vacation. All of the leaves were a rich black on one side and gray on the other. I have no idea why. Maybe it was some sort of mold or disease, but the colors were so even. The leaves were curled somewhat, but mostly intact without holes or visible decay. So strange. But now I can say that black and gray are colors of nature, so here’s my third natured-inspired placemat, again made with squares and strips of scraps, and columns made of scraps for the back. Leftover black and white binding fabric made the perfect frame. 

So that’s it for October makes. We vacationed on the shore of Lake Michigan. The weather was fabulous. We hiked and biked and basked in the glow of spectacular October sunsets. I took way too many photos, so I’ll just share a few. 

So much inspiration. I did pick up a few pieces of fabric at a quilt store to add to a selection for a possible landscape quilt. (We stopped at another, but it had closed three minutes before we got there. Sigh.) I’ll share those another time. 

I’m linking up today with Kelly at My Quilt Infatuation for Needle and Thread Thursday and on Sunday with Cynthia at Quilting is More Fun than Housework for Oh Scrap. Now it’s time to make my yearly ornaments for my grands based on their Halloween costumes. Then I’ll get back to quilting. I hope you are enjoying and drawing inspiration from autumn (or spring) where you are. And if you live in my country, I wish you peace and sanity during this election season. (This post may seem like I’m just floating along as if everything is normal. I can assure you that’s just me trying to distract myself. I am hopeful but not calm.)