Rain Drop Keeps Fall On My Hed on May 1st

Josephine in Spring

When I first read this quarter’s challenge I groaned, “Are you kidding me?” When I finally settled in to give it a good think, the image that kept popping up was the top part of a head at the bottom of a quilt with rain drops falling and the words: Raindrops keep falling on my head, but that doesn’t mean _____. After watching my little tortoiseshell cat, Josephine, flinch and twitch while getting rained on one day last month, I thought of putting a cat head at the bottom instead of a people head. Then I suddenly remembered a cat quilt I had made twenty years ago and the final idea sprang to mind fully formed in about sixty seconds. I made a little sketch and set to work.

The cat is a variation of a cat from the pattern “There Are Cats on My Quilt” by the late Billie Lauder. There are ninety-nine 2″ blocks plus the border. It measures about 22×19 inches or 56×48 centimeters. I tried and ripped out two attempts at quilting (while uttering a few several choice cuss words) before falling back on my usual wavy cross hatch. I like how crinkly it makes quilts once they are washed and dried. Finally, the words came from the depths of my darling, exasperated and exasperating pussycat’s soul: “Mom-mee! Rain drop keeps fall on my hed but that not meen I not want go owt! Then bak in. Then owt. Then…” And there you have it: Josephine in Spring.

Is MY quilt!

Texture on February 1st

Greetings Fellow Endeavourers!

Having been a member of this group since its inception but, due to a series of bizarre life events, having never actually finished a quilt to post, I am thrilled to have something to show you this time around.

I have always wanted to try my hand at a Cathedral Windows quilt and this seemed a good time to give it a whirl. It's made of nine blocks and measures 14 in / 35.5 cm square. The learning curve was surprisingly steep. I groused to myself that I would finish this sucker and never do another. But, I found little tricks and fixes as I went along, and things came out better as I kept sewing.

The blocks are machine zig-zagged together which is something I would not do again as it makes the intersections at the corners quite thick. The curves of the windows are hand stitched, which is something I like to do -very zen. The buttons add texture and interest and, most importantly, camouflage above referenced crappy intersections.

The background is white muslin, the windows are a fabric by Alex Anderson from a line called "Flutter," and the buttons are from an old shirt of my husband's. And, I see it is snowing softly as I look out my kitchen window.

I wish you all many blessings as we enter February!
Smiles, Maureen