Work in Progress Wednesday

It has been awhile since I have shared what I have been working on.  This is a fairly new project--I think I am on Day 10 of making these Cartwheel Blocks.  I saw this free block on 'Freshly Pieced' several months ago (I believe you have to purchase the pattern now).  I downloaded and printed it and added that piece of paper to my "Things to Try" clipboard.  I finally had a window of time to play around with it last week.

 These were my first two blocks.  I was hooked!  Now I should clarify a few things.  I shrunk Lee's pattern down by 60%.  Her block (that is in the pattern) makes an 11 inch block.  After the shrinking, my block is 7 inches.  Also, I am foundation piecing these--I think her may be paper pieced.

 This was the progress as of Sunday....

 and here is the progress as of this morning!  I haven't played around with the placement yet--this is just random.  What do you think?  I love it--but I will not be making any more dark blocks--I think there are enough of those and I have to spread those around.  I have plans to make a total of 63 blocks--so I have about 20 more to go!

I am linking up to WIP Wednesday over at Freshly Pieced!

A Mother's Hope Update

Hello friends!  Popping in today to share a little about what is going on with our 'A Mother's Hope' program.  For those who are new here this program provides quilts to mothers who are receiving treatment and counseling for postpartum depression.  Here is the original post for a few months ago with more details. 
My mom was invited to an open house a couple of weeks ago for the program.  She wanted to share a few thoughts from her experience that day.

"The quilts are such a blessing."  That's what I heard yesterday when I attended an open house for the mother and baby program at Pine Rest.  I was again impressed by how dedicated the staff are who work with the moms in the program.  They want only the best for these new moms, both now and in the future as the women leave the program.  They were very kind in their praise of the quilts and how they feel the women can use them as they recover - not only emotionally, as a source of hope and comfort, but also practically, as they spread them on their laps or around their shoulders during group therapy sessions.  Often the moms are surprised to learn that they are choosing a quilt for themselves, not their baby.  And some know right away which one they want - others look through the stash and take their time making their choice.  They love the notes that are included, and will sometimes share the note on their quilt with the other moms in the group.
Yesterday, the staff had hung some of the smaller quilts in the hallway for the open house - other were spread over small tables or bookcases adding to the look of the comfortable and nicely decorated spaces used for the therapy sessions.  I was very proud to be there, and see the reaction from the staff to the quilts.
If you've contributed a quilt to this, our latest Margaret's Hope Chest project, thank you so much!  The staff could not say enough how much they appreciate your/our quilts, and the praise was genuine - not just because I happened to be there.  If you can make a quilt or two for this program this year, we would be very grateful.  And please, if you do, include a note about the quilt to the new mom.  It doesn't have to be eloquent - just sincere about why you chose the pattern, or the colors, or an encouraging word to someone struggling right now.
As the eighth anniversary of Mom's death approaches, I am humbled that God is leading us to be able, with the help of so many, to provide hope, comfort, warmth to so many people and projects."

Again, if you can make a quilt or you have a quilt in your stash that you could share with one of these moms that would be wonderful.  I believe we have brought over 40 quilts since the beginning of 2013--and the majority of them have been chosen.  We would like to be able to continue serving in this way throughout the year.

All quilts can be sent to:
Margaret's Hope Chest
630 Griswold SE
Grand Rapids, MI 49507

Blessings on your quilting!

'Fun in the Middle' Quilts for Orphans in Guatemala

Happy March to everyone! For me, January and February are typically great months for cranking out lots of quilts--which of course, makes me quite happy!  This year, despite many distractions I did manage to get several projects finished.
One of the projects that I am very motivated to complete is the 10 'Fun in the Middle' quilts for the Village of Hope community in Guatemala which is set to open in April.  These quilts are going to be VERY SPECIAL gifts to 20 children with special needs.  These children literally have NOTHING--not even a mom or dad.  Village of Hope will give them a foster mom and dad--and a home-like environment (remember that Guatemala has shut down International adoptions).  I believe very strongly in this program and hope to visit the project in 2014. Personally, my husband and I chose to invest in the building of these homes last year--you can too if you feel led--here is a link to a post written by Amy Block who is the leader of this project.

We collected 'Fun in the Middle' blocks last year from many of our lovely volunteers and over time I have created 9 tops (one more to go).  This past week I finished up FOUR!!!  Here they are:

Aren't they great?!?  I love them all!! I still have 6 more to go but like I said I am highly motivated.
So if you were paying attention to what I wrote above, you will see that I said I am making 10 quilts--but there are 20 children who will live in the Village of Hope.  WE NEED 10 MORE QUILTS!!  I am only one person (with a pretty full plate :)) and as much as I would love to have the time to make 10 more quilts I do know my limits (or do I?) These quilts need to be ready to send by the FIRST WEEK IN APRIL.
Do you have time to make a quilt that could be part of the other group of 10?  I know God sees our need and will fill it--could it be with a quilt from you?  We need 10 more 'Fun in the Middle' quilts.  Here is the block instructions--as you can see I used 35 blocks for each quilt.  You can finish it off anyway you would like--I did a large meander stitch on my machine.  I promise you that it will become the unique treasure of a child in Guatemala :)
I am going to number 1-10 below and if you are able to help send me an e-mail and I will add your name to the list below--that way everyone will know if we still have a need! 
1. Dhia
2. Ellen
3. Sherry
4. Lynn
5. Katie
6. Delleen
7. Carol
8. Delleen
9. Bea
10. Sherry

First Prison Quilt Giving Coming Up!!!!

Hi friends!  I have been absent for a few weeks!  We moved into a new house (same island :)) and things have been c-r-a-z-y!!  Packing up one house, husband out of town for a whole week, setting up new house, cleaning old house, and of course, homeschooling, adoption details, and Margaret's Hope Chest.  I am thankful for a strong body and a high tolerance for stressful situations (lots of practice). 
Enough on that.
Let's talk about quilting!
The first prison giveaway is coming up quickly--April  5-6.  This One Day With God Camp will be held in Manistee, Michigan at the Oaks Correctional Facility.   There will be about 50 boys and girls coming into the prison to spend the day (April 6th) with their dad!  Margaret's Hope Chest offers these dads a chance to give their child a quilt. We are also able to share our story of forgiveness and HOPE.
I wanted to share a bit of letter that I received from one the dads after a camp last summer:

"I just wanted to drop you all a BIG THANK YOU for the beautiful, lovely, warm and very nice quilts that were made by the wonderful people who put their time, energy, creative design and efforts into such inspiring gifts of hope. My children tell me how nice their quilts look spread over their beds.  They say with pride when their friends come over "this quilt is from my dad." A part of me is there with them when they close their eyes and go to sleep.  They are comforted by the quilts of hope and they are assured that I love them very much and will be home soon to be the father they deserve.  My children are covered and protected by HOPE.

Thanks again and God bless,

D. Rogers"

Currently, we have 20 quilts for boys and about 30 for the girls.  What we could use the most is quilts for older girls and boys-emphasis on boys :).  Of course, if you have quilts for younger boys and girls we will need them as well because we have two more of these camps coming over the summer.  

Thank you for your continued support of this program--this is our 4th year of service to the prisons in Michigan. 

Ten More Quilts to 'A Mother's Hope'!!

Ten more quilts were delivered to the Mother and Baby program yesterday.  This is so exciting for all involved!  Maybe you see a quilt that you sent us?  I see two of my quilts in the pile and that brought a smile to my face.  Thank you to those who had quilts on hand and sent them right away--they were needed and will be chosen by a mother needing hope very soon.
We need more quilts to continue helping this program.  I would estimate that we could easily need 10 a month for the entire year--wow! Good thing we have so many generous volunteers out there!
Here is the original post with the directions on how to participate.

Finish it Up Friday

 {I am linking up to Amanda Jean's Finish it Up Friday}

 The last two weeks of December and the first week and a half of January have been good for my quilting.  I have gotten more finished over the past three and a half weeks than in the prior three months!
I finished these 'twin' Thomas the Train quilts this week.  I made them simply by sewing  6X9 inch blocks together.  I stitched in the ditch along the blocks and then tied it in the middle to add a little interest to each block.  Actually, my daughter was able to help me tie the blocks which she enjoyed.
These two quilts will go to 'Wrapped in Hope'- our program for children who have a parent in prison.  We always need boy themed quilts!

 My mom and dad have been here all this week visiting (my high productivity level may be due to the fact that she is here :)) and so we played around with different ideas.  The quilt top below my mom designed and I sewed.  We started with a 9 patch and cut it apart and rearranged it to this design.

 And finally, here are two of the first 'Fun in the Middle' tops.  One we tried monochromatic and the other was random.  My daughter also arranged an all pink one that I don't have a picture of yet.  I am still deciding how to quilt them but I do know where they are going when finished.......Guatemala!!!
I have made a friend who is building a 'Village of Hope' for children with various special needs (remember that Guatemala has closed all international adoptions) who need a family.  They just raised enough money to build the first two houses.  Each house will have 10 children in it--so I contacted her and asked her if she would like quilts for those 20 kids bed's.  Of course, she was so excited and said YES!  So, all of the 'Fun in the Middle' quilts will go to Guatemala!! 

Sorry for the wrinkles :)

URGENT 'A Mother's Hope' Update

It's looks like our new project I posted about last week has struck a chord with many of our quilters. The promise of many quilts has been made. Yeah!! I also found out today that these quilts are going to meet a real need.  {When my mom toured the program last week she was able to drop off five quilts to start with-those are the quilts this e-mail is referring to}Here is an e-mail that I received yesterday:

Carin, We gave away two quilts. It was so exciting for the ladies to pick out which one they would take. And emotional for them too. They were so touched/moved by the gift to them. One sweet lady picked one out initially (a blue one) and then the therapist told her that it was for her, not the baby. She immediately picked out a different one and could not believe it was for her.  Thank you again. I can't even tell you how touched we are by this gift.

So, my friends, until the promised quilts start arriving, we need some finished quilts as soon as possible.  Does anyone have a quilt already made that they could send?  The size at this point doesn't matter. Colors should be appropriate for a woman. Thank you in advance.