Reading 1820 Blogs Daily!


  • quilts
  • Page 1 of 249 ( posts )
April 27, 2026
Something New from ... Cat Patches

Good morning, my friends. It was another lovely day here at the Three Cats Ranch. Mike and I gratefully took the opportunity to get outside and spruce up the yard a little bit. There was a gangly three-quarters-dead azalea that needed to be taken out. We’ve talked about it for at least two years. Finally, I was inclined to cut out the dead stuff and see how it would do. As we discussed what should be cut and what shouldn’t, Mike went and got his tools and dug the thing up. (There’s more than one way to ...

read more
Something New from Cat Patches

Good morning, my friends. It was another lovely day here at the Three Cats Ranch. Mike and I gratefully took the opportunity to get outside and spruce up the yard a little bit. There was a gangly three-quarters-dead azalea that needed to be taken out. We’ve talked about it for at least two years. Finally, I was inclined to cut out the dead stuff and see how it would do. As we discussed what should be cut and what shouldn’t, Mike went and got his tools and dug the thing up. (There’s more than one way to ...

read more
Free Motion Quilting – Foliage from I Patch and Quilt

Have you ever turned a clamshell design on its side and used it as a border design? Well, here you go!

The machine quilting design Foliage is based on molar feathers and quarter circles. The grid design works well as a single border design or as a repeated grid pattern, like in the image below.

FMQ-ipatchandquilt-Foliage-01

Foliage is loose and structured at the same time. Yes, the grid in this design creates structure, but the molar feathers are loose and free-flowing within their available space. 

FMQ-ipatchandquilt-Foliage-02

Stitch this design from left to right as a single or double row and pre-mark it ...

read more
April 25, 2026
Two Marvelous Days from ... Cat Patches

Good morning, my friends. It's been an action-packed couple of days. I have so much to tell you, so let's get started right away. I'll start with the sewing. After that, I'll tell you about my walk with Matthew along the Willamette River waterfront...that was yesterday. And then, I'll tell you about our dinner Thursday night. Okay? Okay. Here we go.

In the sewing room, I managed to find enough time to finish the top-stitching on the latest two blocks for the Northern Wilderness project. Here's Block #9, the Outhouse.


And here's ...

read more
Two Marvelous Days from Cat Patches

Good morning, my friends. It's been an action-packed couple of days. I have so much to tell you, so let's get started right away. I'll start with the sewing. After that, I'll tell you about my walk with Matthew along the Willamette River waterfront...that was yesterday. And then, I'll tell you about our dinner Thursday night. Okay? Okay. Here we go.

In the sewing room, I managed to find enough time to finish the top-stitching on the latest two blocks for the Northern Wilderness project. Here's Block #9, the Outhouse.


And here's ...

read more
April 23, 2026
Bittersweet from ... Cat Patches

Good morning, my friends. Yesterday was a day of things getting between me and my sewing. As much as the day tried to keep me fabric free, I was able to get in a little bit of slow-stitching and a successful FART (Fabric Aquisition Road Trip). It was a day for physical therapy. I was in need of a couple of fabrics for different projects, and so I sweetened the bitter trip to PT with a trip to the fabric store. 

Before I needed to leave, I took the first stitches on October's block for a year in the ...

read more
Bittersweet from Cat Patches

Good morning, my friends. Yesterday was a day of things getting between me and my sewing. As much as the day tried to keep me fabric free, I was able to get in a little bit of slow-stitching and a successful FART (Fabric Aquisition Road Trip). It was a day for physical therapy. I was in need of a couple of fabrics for different projects, and so I sweetened the bitter trip to PT with a trip to the fabric store. 

Before I needed to leave, I took the first stitches on October's block for a year in the ...

read more
April 22, 2026
Loony from ... Cat Patches

Good morning, my friends. It's another gray day here at the Three Cats Ranch. We're expecting better weather tomorrow and Friday. It would be nice to have good weather on Friday. Matthew and I are planning a walk down by the Willamette River. If the weather is uncooperative, we have an alternative plan, but the walk would be nice. Fingers crossed.

It was a busy day yesterday. Honestly, I didn't think I could get it all done, but I did. There was laundry to do, treadmills to walk, housekeeping to do, bread to bake, and the list ...

read more
Loony from Cat Patches

Good morning, my friends. It's another gray day here at the Three Cats Ranch. We're expecting better weather tomorrow and Friday. It would be nice to have good weather on Friday. Matthew and I are planning a walk down by the Willamette River. If the weather is uncooperative, we have an alternative plan, but the walk would be nice. Fingers crossed.

It was a busy day yesterday. Honestly, I didn't think I could get it all done, but I did. There was laundry to do, treadmills to walk, housekeeping to do, bread to bake, and the list ...

read more
April 21, 2026
Making Progress from ... Cat Patches

Good morning, my friends. There was a lot on yesterday's agenda. Not as much was accomplished in the sewing room as I'd hoped, but there was some progress. Probably I'll end the day with some top-stitching. But first, I'm going to finish off the last of the snowman and the reindeer.


When I finished with yesterday's slow-stitching, I happened to look outside to see Smitty sitting in his favorite spot. He can keep watch on his entire terrortory from this spot, and the sunshine isn't too intense. They were smart to enjoy the sunshine ...

read more
Making Progress from Cat Patches

Good morning, my friends. There was a lot on yesterday's agenda. Not as much was accomplished in the sewing room as I'd hoped, but there was some progress. Probably I'll end the day with some top-stitching. But first, I'm going to finish off the last of the snowman and the reindeer.


When I finished with yesterday's slow-stitching, I happened to look outside to see Smitty sitting in his favorite spot. He can keep watch on his entire terrortory from this spot, and the sunshine isn't too intense. They were smart to enjoy the sunshine ...

read more
Slow Start from ... Cat Patches

Good morning, my friends. It was a busy morning yesterday. There were several items on my to-do list, and so it was late in the day before I was able to get any sewing done. Today will be much the same, but I think I can swing an earlier start.

Yesterday's sewing goal was to at least get a start on the first of two blocks for the Northern Wilderness project. I'm making blocks 9 and 10. These are the blocks I've made so far:


Next, I'll be making this block, called "The Outhouse." With as ...

read more
Slow Start from Cat Patches

Good morning, my friends. It was a busy morning yesterday. There were several items on my to-do list, and so it was late in the day before I was able to get any sewing done. Today will be much the same, but I think I can swing an earlier start.

Yesterday's sewing goal was to at least get a start on the first of two blocks for the Northern Wilderness project. I'm making blocks 9 and 10. These are the blocks I've made so far:


Next, I'll be making this block, called "The Outhouse." With as ...

read more
April 20, 2026
Lucky Hearts Baby Quilt COMPLETE from Wedding Dress Blue

A coworker is having a baby soon. When asked about a quilt she said that she liked teal-aqua and the room would have a farm animal theme, “You know, like elephants!” I am not sure how many elephants the average farm (outside of Asia) has, but this quilt does have them.

The block is a modified version of Scrappy Log Cabin Heart block. It is a great pattern and highly recommended.

Because of the elephants, I selected a quilting design with that theme. AND, because I am super lucky, found fabric in my stash that has both the right colors ...

read more
April 19, 2026
Gardening and Sewing from ... Cat Patches

Good morning, my friends. It was such a pretty day yesterday, and unexpectedly warm. My usual morning routine was still intact, though. I took the first stitches on the ninth block for the Snowmen and Reindeer. I stitched their faces first so that we could chat while I stitched the rest of their bodies. (Doesn’t everyone do that?)


When I finished with my stitching, I could see Mike outside doing something in the greenhouse. I’d asked him to help me fill these large pots with dirt so that I could repot the tomatoes. When I saw him there ...

read more
Gardening and Sewing from Cat Patches

Good morning, my friends. It was such a pretty day yesterday, and unexpectedly warm. My usual morning routine was still intact, though. I took the first stitches on the ninth block for the Snowmen and Reindeer. I stitched their faces first so that we could chat while I stitched the rest of their bodies. (Doesn’t everyone do that?)


When I finished with my stitching, I could see Mike outside doing something in the greenhouse. I’d asked him to help me fill these large pots with dirt so that I could repot the tomatoes. When I saw him there ...

read more
April 18, 2026
Fast Flimsy from ... Cat Patches

Good morning, my friends. I sewed fast yesterday, and now the Kittens in Cups quilt is ready for sandwiching. Before I could get to that, though, I finished off Block 5 for Home is Where My Flock Is.

Here are the five blocks I have for this quilt so far. There is still a long way to go on this, but these blocks stitch up in just a few days.

And that meant I needed a new stitching project. The ninth block for the Snowmen and Reindeer is traced and ready to go. This one is called Snowmen, Reindeer, and ...

read more
Fast Flimsy from Cat Patches

Good morning, my friends. I sewed fast yesterday, and now the Kittens in Cups quilt is ready for sandwiching. Before I could get to that, though, I finished off Block 5 for Home is Where My Flock Is.

Here are the five blocks I have for this quilt so far. There is still a long way to go on this, but these blocks stitch up in just a few days.

And that meant I needed a new stitching project. The ninth block for the Snowmen and Reindeer is traced and ready to go. This one is called Snowmen, Reindeer, and ...

read more
Back From The Quilter from Wedding Dress Blue

I picked these up Thursday afternoon.

YAY! Finished quilts coming soon.

read more
April 17, 2026
A Raggedy Flimsy from ... Cat Patches

Good morning, my friends. It's another sunny day here at the Three Cats Ranch. We've had our typical spring weather with a little bit of everything during the day. A few days ago, we even had some hail. No snow, thank goodness, although we do sometimes get snow in April. 

When I left you yesterday, I was on my way to fill the birdfeeders. Along my way, I saw a few little things going on in the garden. For one thing, I'm seeing colors on the Lavender Whisper peony. I'll admit I'm anxious to see ...

read more
  • quilts
  • Page 1 of 249 ( 4978 posts )