Other people's UFO's

What was I thinking???? Last year, I started so many projects. And, this year, I committed to finish them. So, why was I buying other people's UFO's at the New Braunfels quilt show? I couldn't help myself. I got these at the guild booth and each was $1

This first one is a tumbling blocks quilt and even though you can't really see it in the picture, the background is dark blue and the purple and blue print tumbling blocks are just vivid and wonderful.

And, these cmas trees. She had 3 finished and 4 more cut and I got the pattern and the templates.

But, the one I really lucked on came from an antique shop we stopped in on the way to lunch. The shop was huge and my two poor breakfast tacos had worn off. My stomach was growling. And, this shop was really big. So, by the time we circled around and got back near the front door, I wasn't thinking clearly. And, I bargained the seller down and bought this for $12.

Inside it were these. Even though the box says 108, I counted 110. They probably were originally meant to finish at 3.5 inches.

They are the cutest, tiny 4-patches set in yellow QST's and a red border. I'm going to sash them together, maybe with cornerstones. We debated sashing color. Any suggestions? I thought blue, Rob and Sydney thought pink or brown. After I square them, I think they'll probably finish at 3". Some of them are kind of...rectangle. That's it.

Now, here is the most fun part of this story. We get to the German restaurant for lunch and are seated and sipping our tea and I start counting my blocks. And, I hear a lady at the next table talking about the blocks and then, she asked a question, and I handed over blocks and we looked at them, and we found out that one of the ladies was the President of the Bryan, TX quilt guild. I found these patterns at the bottom of the box and we started passing them and before I knew it, the pres of the guild was on the phone with the library, trying to date the paper that the previous owner cut her templates from. Turns out that one of the templates has a two digit phone number for an insurance agency and an address and she had a librarian look it up and that town hasn't used two digit phone numbers since 1924. Okay, so that's just one piece of paper that might be that old. And, it doesn't mean the blocks are that old...but what if they are? I'm certainly not going to try to date anything and ruin this intrigue. I love a good story better than the truth. I wish we had exchanged more information. As we drove home, I wished I had given them my blog name. But, we didn't and it turned out to be one of those chance encounters between quilters.

Funny thing, the finger work I took for the drive was packed into a newer Whitman's sampler tin. I guess the idea that quilters recycle isn't a new one.


The quilt show was huge. Much bigger than we expected. And, I took lots of photos and had a better organization system so I can link names and quilts together and credit the maker in the post. I didn't spend too much money, just some fats and hand dyes and a few yards that were really cheap at the guild table. I'm using Rob's laptop. My new screen should be on the way. And, it did cost as much as Christmas.

Take care and hope you're having a nice weekend. My string of bad luck seems to have ended. At least I hope so. Well, except for the heat. We saw Lucifer buying ice on the way home.

Lane