Here’s a look at the car just before I left yesterday. It was packed to the roof with fabric, fabric and more fabric! There were a few clothes in there but it was mostly quilting things for summer work and fun!

The minute I open one of the passenger doors Clutch and Zoe jump in and refuse to get out. They’ll sit there as long as it takes for me to load the back. I guess they want to make sure they don’t get left behind. We had a nice drive and everything is unloaded. It’s not all put away but that can be part of today’s project. SPOILER ALERT: The quilt in the basket in front of Clutch is one of the 1930s Wurzburg kit quilts. Believe it or not I’m going to use it a jumping off point for a lap quilt using some of the Kaffe Fassett fabric I packed!

Brenda took special time out of her caregiver schedule to put together today’s pattern for you. There’s not much time for stitching right now. She spends most of her day with her husband at the nursing home. She said it’s our prayers that are getting her through all this so please join me in lifting her up with a special prayer.
Today’s block is an easy paper pieced block. I don’t think we’ve done any paper piecing yet so I think you’ll really enjoy it.

If you’ve missed any of this year’s blocks you can get them in the online store – HERE. The blocks for last year’s quilt are on THIS PAGE. I’ve seen some beautiful quilts made from the Just Takes 2 designs! I hope you find time to take a stitch or two today. If we can do just a little bit each day we’ll have a quilt made before we know it.

Just Takes 2™ Schoolhouse Quilt
Block 8 – Click here

There’s snow is several places around the private drive but we’re lucky ours is gone.

There just isn’t much going on anywhere you look.

One thing there’s lots of is water! It’s the highest I’ve ever seen it.

Today is also a Just Takes 2 day and there’s a new block to add to a schoolhouse. You’ll have this one sewn together in no time at all. A few little four patch units and some half square triangles and you’ll be done.

This is Block 7 in the quilt and Brenda said it’s called Prairie Queen.

Can you see those simple little units?

There’s a couple of sweethearts watching over my shoulder as I work on this. They’re waiting to get out and enjoy the sunshine. It’s going to be almost 80 degrees today. That ought to melt the last of the snow. Since our jury duty was canceled I think we’re going to get out there and soak it in. I can clean on a rainy day!

It’s May Day today too. To celebrate if you use the discount code MAYDAY during checkout in the Online Store you’ll get 25% off any of the digital patterns. If you’ve missed some of the schoolhouse blocks or want to start on last year’s quilt this is the time. Maybe there’s another pattern you’ve wanted to add to your collection. Go ahead and celebrate May Day!

Speaking of last year’s quilt, if you haven’t seen Barbara Black’s version and the beautiful quilting being done by Joyful Quilter, you need to take a minute and check it out! It’s wonderful for Brenda and I to see our design translated to cloth in such a beautiful way. Nice job ladies!

Just Takes 2™ Schoolhouse Quilt
Block 7 – Click here

You’ll start with squares of the three fabrics used in the block. You’ll get two quarter square triangle units from the two red, one white and one red print fabric shown. Draw a diagonal line on the wrong side of the red solid squares.

Sew 1/4″ away from the drawn line on both sides of it. Cut on the drawn line to get the half square triangles we’ll use in the next step.

Press the seam allowance toward the red solid fabric.

Draw a diagonal line on the wrong side of the red and white half square triangles. Match them with the red solid and red print ones. You’ll see how the seams just nestle together for a perfect match.

Stitch 1/4″ away from the drawn line on both sides of it. Cut the units apart on the drawn line.

Voila! Quarter square triangle units with three colors of fabric and they’re all in the right place for putting your block together.

Here’s a closer look at the block. You can see where the quarter square triangles go.

Let’s get stitching -

Just Takes 2™ Schoolhouse Quilt
Block 6 – Click here

P.S. If you’ve missed any of the blocks you can purchase them HERE

Almost forgot……It’s Clutch’s official birthday today – he’s 9 years old and I’m feeling a bit guilty about not being there but knowing him he’ll forgive me. Don’t forget to get today’s Sally Post Floral Sampler block too!

Let’s start with a look inside Lolly’s Fabrics. I saw so many new and beautiful fabrics I couldn’t begin to take it all in. There were lots of new quilts to see too. I believe most of these can be ordered as either the pattern or as a kit. Trust me…………go for the kit! Call them if there’s something you like. With all the quilters coming to town this week these won’t last long.

Be sure to check out the article on the Quilt Gardens in the Shipshewana area in the April/May No. 433 issue of Quilter’s Newsletter Magazine. It’s fantastic and so inspiring!

Not taking time to edit the photos so I hope you can see everything okay. If you have a question about anything just call the shop and describe the picture. They’ll be able to look at the post too and can help you out.

My next stop was to Rebecca Haarer Art and Antiques. The shop is filled to the brim right now so look at the pic carefully.

I found lots of treasures including another quilt from Rebecca’s bed that is going to make the most fantastic pattern. It’s one of the most unique quilts I’ve seen in a long time and can’t wait to try the design in different fabrics.

Remember the Shipshewana Scraps Quilt? That was drafted from another quilt off Rebecca’s bed in the shop.

That’s it for tonight. I had a fantastic dinner with friends and have spent most of the evening uploading these pictures. The menu was liver ‘n onions, mashed potatoes, gravy and buttered carrots. Pie? you bet……..German Chocolate!

Things move more slowly in Amish country and picture uploading is no exception. I’ll do my best to post more tomorrow. I’m heading to Yoder Department Store, back to Lolly’s and the Antique Barn. The retreat starts at 3:00PM so there will be some sewing tomorrow!

I can’t believe I haven’t posted anything new since I did the last block for Brenda two weeks ago. I guess I’ve been busier than I thought. Today’s block is another classic pieced block you’ll have no trouble putting together. Here it is already sewn in a schoolhouse.

If you’re on Spring break this week I hope you’re having a wonderful vacation. I’m organizing and packing to head off to Shipshewana next Tuesday for the Dear Jane Retreat. I can’t wait to see my retreat buddies, eat pie, go shopping and maybe take a stitch or two in something.

Just Takes 2™ Schoolhouse Quilt
Block 5 – Click here

I wish I had time to make lots of these. I think they’d be adorable set together with sashing between them. Even as a two color quilt they’d shine!

No time for chit chat today. I’m off to the grocery store before it starts snowing in a couple of hours. It will be Zoe’s first time in her crate. I know I won’t like it and I doubt she’ll like it either but she’s just not old enough to be on her own in the house with Clutch. Scroll down and there’s a link to get today’s block.

Just Takes 2™ Schoolhouse Quilt
Block 4 – Click here

Before we get to today’s block let’s take a look at how to make the pieced border unit.

With right sides together, match a white square to one end of the red rectangle.

Sew on the drawn diagonal line.

Press the square over to make a triangle.

Trim the bottom two pieces under the triangle leaving a 1/4″ seam allowance.

Match a red print square to the opposite end of the rectangle and sew on the drawn line. Press and trim like you did on the white square.

There’s your first Flying Geese unit! One down…………… only 115 to go! Divide them up and do a few each time you make a block and that way they’ll be ready when your blocks are.

There’s a lot of miles between Michigan and Texas but Brenda and I do a pretty good job of staying connected. I have a special treat for you today. This is one of Brenda’s blocks using Kaffe Fassett fabrics. Isn’t it beautiful? She was thinking of changing her background to a deep green but I love the block just as it is and am waiting to see what the green fabric looks like before I cast my vote. Be sure to head over to Brenda’s Dear Jane web site and see her other blocks.

Just Takes 2™ Schoolhouse Quilt
Block 3 + Pieced Border – Click here

While at a Dear Jane retreat, friend and local antique dealer Rebecca Haarer brought over an antique quilt she wanted me to see. I had just finished my second fabric collection and the quilt was filled with a vast array of antique fabrics along with some wild and crazy patchwork. She knew it would be the perfect jumping off point for a collection of reproduction fabrics. She offered to sell me the quilt at an unbelievable price and it came home to live with me forever.

Isn’t this just a feast for the eyes? Or is it just a mess? There is so much going on you can hardly take it all in. Perhaps that’s the idea!

There are hundreds of beautiful fabrics in a wide variety of colors and styles. It’s easy to see why Rebecca thought this would be a great quilt to design from and she was right!

There’s even a really cool crocheted edging but it’s only on one side of the quilt. Makes you wonder doesn’t it?

The backing is a homespun or ticking style stripe….nothing special.

Hidden underneath the wonderfully scrappy patchwork is a layer of a golden brown homespun check that blends nicely with the back. Do you think the patchwork was added to “dress up” a plain ol’ comforter?

I drafted the blocks as close to the original quilt as possible while bringing a little order to a true “make do” quilt. I thought long and hard about the block size so the quilt wouldn’t be an overwhelming project to put together. I wanted you to be able to mix and match the blocks, maybe with some you already have and use leftover pieces from charm packs, jelly rolls, etc. Almost everything is rotary cut and can be machine pieced. There was a lot of math to check, double check and triple check on all 36 pages in the pattern. Okay, some of them are pictures of the antique quilt but you know what I mean.

I couldn’t resist the temptation to shuffle the blocks around a little trying to give the quilt a more balanced look. I wanted a more rectangular shape too so I added a border but made the top and bottom wider. It’s now the perfect size for a lap quilt.

I just had to take out what might have been some orphan blocks from another project and use only the scrap blocks. I rotated some of them which gives the block a whole new look. I have to admit I think I like this version the best and maybe I’ll use some of my Kaffe Fassett or 1930s scraps instead of 1800s repros when I start stitching. Wouldn’t that be fun?

The pattern also includes instructions for the vintage size blocks if you want to make a larger bed size quilt. There are also block illustrations you can use to make miniature blocks and because I had so much fun playing with layouts, fabrics, etc. I’m including my EQ7 project file so you can change sizes, fabrics and even add blocks like I did in this last quilt. Remember, you need to have the Electric Quilt software to open the EQ file. The rest of the pattern is in standard PDF format. You can always order a printed pattern too.

I know you’re going to love Shipshewana Scraps and can’t wait to see your version of this wild and wonderful quilt. The pattern is in the online store – you can learn more about it by CLICKING HERE