Starry, Starry Night

Twilight Star Quilts

The Twilight Star quilt block is based on the Ohio Star block with more patches added in the corners. There is nothing difficult in the making of this quilt block other than it has more pieces, therefore, more seams and so you must pay close attention to sewing an accurate seam allowance.

This quilt block is wonderful when you choose to make it a scrappy version. Just make sure to have lots of contrast in your chosen pieces. Download the free quilt block pattern.

Quotes About Stars

The Starry Night painted 1889, by Vincent van Gogh

• "For my part I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream."
  ~ Vincent van Gogh


• "Men go abroad to wonder at the heights of mountains, at the huge waves of the sea, at the long courses of the rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motions of the stars, and they pass by themselves without wondering."
  ~ St. Augustine


• "If the stars should appear but one night every thousand years, how man would marvel and stare."
  ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson


• "No pessimist ever discovered the secret of the stars, or sailed to an uncharted land, or opened a new doorway for the human spirit."
  ~ Helen Keller

_{Twilight Star quilt image © W. Russell, patchworksquare.com
'The Starry Night' image courtesy Van Gogh Gallery}

Variation on the Nine Patch Square Quilt Block

Nine Patch Square - Variation

I was looking through some of my published quilt block patterns and liked the look of the Nine Patch Square - Variation. So, today that is the featured block.

At first glance, this looks like it would make an uninspiring quilt, but with a bit of imagination, you can create a stunning heirloom for future generations. Click the link above or download the free quilt block pattern here.

A Potpourri of Quotes for Today

• 

  Julia Child in action

  "The only time to eat diet food is while you're waiting for the steak to cook."
  ~ Julia Child


• "Each man is a hero and an oracle to somebody."
  ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson


• "Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower."
  ~ Steve Jobs


• "I value the friend who, for me, finds time on his calendar, but I cherish the friend who for me does not consult his calendar."
  ~ Robert Brault

_{Nine Patch Square Variation image © W. Russell, patchworksquare.com
Julia Child image public domain}

A Shout-Out to all the great Moms out there - Happy Mother's Day!

Mother's Choice

It's Mother's Day on Sunday so I thought it only appropriate to celebrate all those Moms out there with the quilt block called Mother's Choice. This quilt block is a little more challenging than some, but only for the reason that there are many pieces in the block. If you are precise in sewing your quarter inch seam allowance, your block will turn out fine.

This block contains only common patches -- the half square triangle, the flying geese patches  and some squares.

Now of course there will be quotes for all you Moms out there, just so you know how important you are in the lives of your family.

Quotes about Mothers

Happy Mother's Day to my Mom

• "All women become like their mothers. That is their tragedy. No man does. That's his."
  ~ Oscar Wilde


• "I ask people why they have deer heads on their walls. They always say because it's such a beautiful animal. There you go. I think my mother is attractive, but I have photographs of her"
  ~ Ellen DeGeneres


• "God could not be everywhere, and therefore he made mothers."
  ~ Rudyard Kipling


• "Mothers are the necessity of invention."
  ~ Bill Watterson

It's All About the 5

Crazy House

Monday, the 5th of May, is known as Cinco de Mayo -- a day observed in the United States and Mexico to celebrate the pride and heritage of the Mexican people.

So on that note, today's post is about celebrations and the number five -- more specifically, quilt blocks that are deemed to be five patch blocks.

Today's featured block is called Crazy House and I chose that for the simple reason that I imagine  there will be a lot of craziness going on during the 24 hours of Cinco de Mayo. Click the link above or download the free quilt pattern here.

Quotes about celebrating

• "Celebrate the happiness that friends are always giving, make every day a holiday and celebrate just living!"
  ~ Amanda Bradley


• "The more you praise and celebrate your life, the more there is in life to celebrate."
  ~ Oprah Winfrey


• "Stop worrying about the potholes in the road and celebrate the journey."
  ~ Barbara Hoffman

and finally a quote about Cinco de Mayo


• "Cinco de Mayo has come to represent a celebration of the contributions that Mexican Americans and all Hispanics have made to America."

  

  Celebrate Cinco de Mayo

  
  ~ Joe Baca

_{Crazy House image © W. Russell, patchworksquare.com
Cinco de Mayo Image courtesy of KEKO64 / FreeDigitalPhotos.net}
 

If I had to choose a sister ....

Sister's Choice

My (little) sister has been on my mind a lot lately so I thought this was the perfect time to feature the Sister's Choice quilt block. This selection contains only simple shapes but you can create a really wonderful quilt with just this one quilt block. Download the free quilt block pattern.

Quotes about sisters

• "Sister is probably the most competitive relationship within the family, but once the sisters are grown, it becomes the strongest relationship."
  ~ Margaret Mead


• "Sisters are different flowers from the same garden."
  ~ Author Unknown


• "Sisters function as safety nets in a chaotic world simply by being there for each other."

  

  My little sis and me, circa 1961
  Aren't we precious?

  
  ~ Carol Saline

and finally, this following quote will strike my sister as particularly funny ... and probably true ...

• "Big sisters are the crab grass in the lawn of life."
  ~ Charles Schulz
   

Now to follow up on my opening title ... If I had to choose a sister, there would be no other choice than the fabulous sister I am blessed to have.

I'm a Klutz -- What can I say?

Broken Dishes Cross

I've been dropping things frequently and so I thought the perfect quilt block to showcase today would be Broken Dishes Cross.  How appropriate -- I have lots of broken dishes and as my grandmother would say "That makes me cross."  (It's funny how you don't hear that term much any more, but I remember well how my grandma would get "cross".)

What is hilarious to me now, is that I just went on a search for a free photo of some broken dishes. Can't find a free one  -- and since I have already cleaned up my latest fiasco, I'm not about to smash something new for a photo op. I'm sure you can use your imagination. 

So on that note, here are some quotes that struck my funnybone (but didn't break it).

• "I love being married. It's so great to find one special person you want to annoy for the rest of your life."
  ~ Rita Rudner
• "In the beginning there was nothing. God said, 'Let there be light!' And there was light. There was still nothing, but you could see it a whole lot better."
  ~ Ellen DeGeneres
• "Seize the moment. Remember all those women on the Titanic who waved off the dessert cart."
  ~ Erma Bombeck
• "Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark. A large group of professionals built the Titanic."
  ~ Dave Barry

and finally, what would a list of funny quotes be without the special take on life by Yogi Berra ...


• "You should always go to other people's funerals, otherwise, they won't come to yours."
  ~ Yogi Berra

_{Broken Dishes Cross quilt block image © W. Russell, patchworksquare.com}

Earth Day Thoughts

Earth Day - April 22

Today is Earth Day so it is time to take a step back and look at how you might make a difference.

It was interesting to me that many of the quotes I have chosen to feature were made by scientists. Who better to show us the way?

Quotes about nature

• "Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better."
  ~ Albert Einstein
  
• "Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's need, but not every man's greed."
  ~ Mahatma Gandhi
  
• "Until a man duplicates a blade of grass, Nature can laugh at his so-called scientific knowledge. Remedies from chemicals will never stand in favorable comparison with the products of Nature, the living cell of a plant, the final result of the rays of the sun, the mother of all life."
  ~ Thomas Edison
  
• "Live in each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influence of the earth."
  ~ Henry David Thoreau
  
• "Only when the last tree has died and the last river been poisoned and the last fish been caught will we realize we cannot eat money."
  ~ Cree Indian Proverb

Butterfly Parade

It seemed fitting to show a fun quilt block for Earth Day. The Butterfly Parade block fit that bill. Download the free pattern.

A side note:
Today would have been my Dad's 92nd birthday. I'm sure he is on a heavenly golf green today smiling down on the beautiful earth. You are missed Dad. 

_{"Butterfly on purple flower" - Image courtesy of SOMMAI / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
"Butterfly Parade" quilt block image © W. Russell, patchworksquare.com}

"Earth Laughs in Flowers"

It is such a lovely sunny day today, that I just had to share this quote ... "Earth laughs in flowers." by Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Earth day is later this week too and there are (finally) flowers popping up here and there, after this long and brutal winter season.

Today is Easter Sunday so it seems appropriate to feature the free quilt block pattern Easter Basket, one of many basket style quilt blocks. Use this one block to make your quilt or switch it up and make a sampler quilt using lots of the different basket quilt blocks.

Easter Basket

Flowers and laughter make us happy

• "Won't you come into the garden? I would like my roses to see you."
  ~ Richard Brinsley Sheridan


• "Flowers are the sweetest things God ever made and forgot to put a soul into."
  ~ Henry Ward Beecher


• "Laughing is the shortest distance between two people."
  ~ Victor Borge


• "The most wasted of all days is one without laughter."
  ~ e. e. cummings

_{Baby Girl in Garden of Flowers - Image courtesy of David Castillo Dominici / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Easter Basket image © W. Russell, patchworksquare.com}