Rock & Roll Quilt

In May of last year, Mary Helen reached out to me with a request for a T-Shirt Quilt.  I said Yes, but it would have to wait till the end of the year.

I started the day after Thanksgiving and mailed the completed quilt the day after Christmas.

On the banks of the Potomac

The box I received contained about 18 t-shirts, most of them were never worn and in excellent condition. I cut them up - all of them. 

Then came the tiresome task of stabilizing them. I used about a bolt and a half of SF-101. 

Stabilizing T-shirts

Layering & Ironing

Once all pieces were stabilized, the design process could begin.  Of course, the stars would take center stage but the different sizes had to be reconciled.

I used the t-shirt backs to make checkerboard coping strips and used them as a design element.

Checkerboard

 

Captivating!

It was time to move to the Design Wall, although it was impossible to cram all these legends into a tight space.

Design Wall

The blue/white tie-dye t-shirt (Led Zeppelin) needed some white fabric but none of the t-shirts had any white. Paul let me use one of his old t-shirts (frayed crewneck) to make the blue/white coping strip.

Added White

The grid was three wide by four tall and I was aiming for about 60" wide by 80" tall.  Working on one row at a time, I added coping strips as needed.

Flimsy

Thick t-shirt fabric, made heavier with stabilizer does make the quilting a challenge. I switched to a 90/14 needle and quilted from the backing side using the square grid of the printed fabric as a guide.

Backing and Label

Here are some close-ups.

I chose this backing so that I could use the squares as a quilting grid.

I am told that the quilt was well-received.  Mary Helen texted "my friend absolutely loves the quilt"

Mission Accomplished.

In other news, I completed my blocks for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge.  After considering and discarding several designs, I decided to make super simple log cabin blocks. 

10" Log Cabin Block

Work in Progress

Thank you Island Batik

I will be sharing with Angela's Linky Party and Quilting Jetgirl's Favorite Finish and others too. See full list on the sidebar.

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Last week, we visited Mount Vernon on our way to Richmond. Just a couple of days to get away and celebrate Paul's birthday.

Mount Vernon - Looking at Maryland across the Potomac

Calm before the Storm

In Richmond, we visited the Civil War Museum constructed around the ruins of the Tredegar Foundry. Some pictures from our visit.

 

I texted my daily Wordle to Mari, while we waited for our lunch. She texted back. 

Mari: Did you see the news? 

Me: No. We are visiting the Civil War Museum. What happened?

Mari: Don't see it. Enjoy your day.

We did see the news. It was everywhere. 

So many times, my name is misspelled as Pretti. Every time I hear it, I stop and think - did someone call me?

A former co-worker turned friend bought some zippered pouches and wrote me a check.

I am Pretti

This is a difficult time and I am not OK. 

Hugs to you. Hope you will hug me back.

What did I miss?

Hello quiltmakers,

I am back from my trip to India. Mom's surgery went well and she is on the road to recovery. I appreciate your kind thoughts and warm wishes. 

Although my visit wasn't a vacation and I stayed home (near the A/C) due to the heat, my friends (Ruby and Savita) visited me. I felt spoiled with spicy food and sweet mangoes. 

Happy to see you :-)

Veggie Delight (Don't ask me the English name)

Vanilla icecream with fresh mangoes

The Indian street food that I loved would most certainly kill me now. So Meetu recreated it for me at home. Pizzas in India are tiny but loaded with tandoori flavors. 

Street Food, made at home :-)

Regular Phone, Tiny Pizza

My drive home

As much I enjoyed spending time with mom and being there for her, I am thrilled to return home. When I left on May 1, I was still smarting from the all the anti-LGBTQ legislations attacking already marginalized groups.  As soon as I landed in India, I heard the terrible news about the Supreme Court's stance on reproductive rights. While most of the world progresses, America slides into the dark ages. 

According to the current (conservative leaning) Supreme Court, reproductive rights are not included in the Constitution and therefore should be left up to the individual states.  Although this argument may seem simple and straightforward, it sets a chilling precedent. Do you know what else is NOT included in the Constitution? The right to privacy and therefore by extension the right to contraception, the right to same sex marriage and the right to interracial marriage.  Imagine a scenario where my marriage to Paul is deemed illegal.

"Undoing Roe v. Wade and eliminating the right to abortion access opens up the door to dismantling other rights that have previously been protected under that implied right to privacy. That can include the right to same-sex marriage and interracial marriage..." Jean Bae, visiting associate professor of public health policy and management at NYU School of Global Public Health.

Of course, these Supreme Court justices would assure us that this (overturning) is limited to Roe v. Wade but then these are the same people who said (in their confirmation hearings) that Roe v. Wade is the law of the land and that they respect the laws of the land. Their partisan slips are showing. I do not trust them.

If a Positivity QAL was a good idea in 2021, it is an absolute must in 2022. 

Positivity QAL begins May 29, 2022

Our reproductive rights are on the chopping block. America refuses to acknowledge her racist past and the growing threat of white supremacy threatens our communities, or peace and our sanity, while the Supreme Court has washed its hands of most responsibility. 

So we will do what we have always done - sew and quilt, support and vote, protest and march. With renewed fervor!!!

There is much to do after a long trip - unpacking, laundry, groceries etc.  But I am ignoring all those pesky tasks and working frantically to set up the Positivity 2022 Quilt Along. Bernie is spearheading the effort to get sponsors and prizes, while I write the tutorial and calculate fabric requirements.

To avoid confusion, I will take down the posts from last year's QAL, with one exception.  I will compile the 2021 block tutorials, layout options and fabric requirements into a PDF and make it available separately. 

Coming soon - Positivity QAL 2022 - Sponsors and Prizes and Positivity QAL 2022 - Complete Schedule.

In the mean time, please read this article https://www.cnn.com/2022/05/17/opinions/buffalo-shooting-letter-to-white-male-teens-magee/index.html

Also gathering my green scraps for the RSC color for May is Bright Green. 

May is Green!

I will be sharing with all my favorite linky parties, including Angela's RSC Linky.

One with Everything

What did the the monk ask the hot dog vendor?
Make me one with everything.

A Finish!!!

I am back from my vacation with Sandra (http://www.mmmquilts.com). And it was a vacation with a little bit of everything - Friends, Food and Fireworks.

with Linda

Elizabeth, me and Linda

We met with Linda (http://artinsearch.blogspot.com) and Elizabeth (https://www.pinterest.com/elizabethdeare/) - artists/quilters from the Buffalo area.  Chatted non-stop about all things quilty - art quilts, quilt shows, and quilt guilds over steaming hot falafel.

House of Hummus in Buffalo, NY

The vacation provided a whole range of experiences from the quiet lake that gently shimmered in the sun...

Lake Ontario, Niagara-On-The-Lake

to the falls that lit up the night sky.

Niagara Falls at Night

From the Maid of the Mist where the water spray made you smile and giggle...

Rainbow at the Maid of the Mist

to the Buffalo Riverboat Tour that made you wonder.

Remnants of an Industrial Town, Buffalo River

Buffalo riverfront revitalization includes repurposing some of these old structures for modern use. There are restaurants, concert spaces, rock climbing wall, community space for poetry reading and much more. Look up Silo City. I will when I visit Buffalo next time. As a city planner, I get high on sustainability and this adaptive reuse is a planner's dream come true.

Grain Elevator, Buffalo River

We had a handsome man pour us wine and take our picture...

At a wine tasting in Chateau de Charmes Winery, Niagara-On-The-Lake, Ontario

and a very handsome man who made me take his picture.

Statue of David in Delaware Park, Buffalo, NY

From overwhelming and awe-inspiring beauty of Niagara Falls that is impossible to miss...

Niagara Falls - American on the left and Canadian in the distance

to the quiet beauty of street art that we almost missed, but is an inspiration!

Buffalo, NY

And here is the quilt - Since it has at least one of everything (scrap vortex), I am calling this "One with Everything". To learn how to make your own scrap vortex, check this link - http://crazymomquilts.blogspot.com/2015/06/scrap-vortex-qal-week-one.html

One with Everything - 46" by 54"

The backing came from Mary - another quilter friend I have yet to meet. When she was destashing, she send me a box of lovely fabric, including this large print blue flowers which made the perfect backing. Combined with a strip of purple leftover from Clay's Quilt.

Pieced Backing (Label on the bottom right)

It includes scraps from cute animal fabrics, leftovers from Animal House.

Crabs and Owls piece-fully coexist with fish and hedgehogs

 The quilt has every color!!!

Red, green, yellow, blue, pink, purple, orange, brown and black

Like I used every crayon in the box.

Snoopy!!!

 The fabrics remind me of quilts past including the one I made for mom.

Kittens at Play

The quilt finished at 46" by 54". It is a crib size quilt, I think. I wasn't trying for a particular size - just wherever the scrappy improv journey took me.

Walking Foot Quilting

The aqua binding ties everything neatly and makes me very happy.

Aqua Binding

Paul: Did you not take a bag full of quilts to photograph?
Me: Yes, I did. But each quilt is a separate blogpost :-) You will just have to wait for the next post, just like my readers.
(Paul rolled his eyes. He rarely reads my posts.)

Paul - Looks like you had a fun time
Me: Yes, we did. But I missed you.
Paul - Missed me? You two were having too much fun to have missed me.
Me: I was hoping you could drive, so that I could enjoy the gorgeous scenery on my way home :-D
Paul: Brat!!!

Beauty and Inspiration was everywhere. I knew what to expect in Niagara Falls, but the beauty of the City of Buffalo was a pleasant surprise.  I can write a whole blogpost about it, but here are a few pictures.

Lake Hoyt - Delaware Park in Buffalo, NY - View from the pedestrian bridge

I loved the pedestrian/cyclist bridge over the Scajaquada Parkway connecting pedestrians and bicyclists to the trail along the Delaware Park. Being a transportation planner, it is heartening to see other modes of travel (walking, cycling, transit etc.) get their due.

Monarch Butterfly on our morning walk, Buffalo, NY

 Birds and butterflies accompanied our morning walk.

In front of the Buffalo History Museum

It was hot and since the cities in the north rarely get this hot, many places did not have air-conditioning. If I could change one thing, it would be this - I wish it wasn't so hot.
But climate change is real and it is worse than you think.

Paul: Did you not grow up in a hot climate?
Me: Yes, but we did not go sight-seeing on a hot day. Moreover, I am too American (spoiled) now to do without such amenities.
Paul: I agree - you are a hot mess.

Hot Mess

I will be linking with all my favorite linky parties. See full list on the sidebar. But I'd love to hear from you. How is your summer going?