Tag: making 70273 blocks

Holiday Rescues and Remedies

December 16, 2018 / jeanne / 0 Comments

It’s the most wonderful time of the year when people around the world gather and spend time with beloved friends and families . . . SO . . . when you get tired of hearing the same ole’ stories, when that one certain family member is stomping on your last nerve, when the kids are running around like chickens with their heads cut off, it’s time to pull out fabric and thread and make some blocks for The 70273 Project.

pieces of white fabric covered with pairs of red X's

Blocks made by Susan Burch and her Grandchildren

two young boys smile broadly while surveying the table filled with

2 of Laurie Dunn’s adorable Grandchildren spent time at the beach making blocks (and decorating shells, some of which they sent to me with their blocks).

GRANDS

If it’s just too cold to send the little darlings outside to run off some of that energy, sit ’em down and make some blocks. You make one red X and your grandchild makes the other red X.

Blocks made by Siblings Peggy Thomas, Linda Moore, and Pat McGregor

SIBLINGS

Instead of sticking your tongue out at your sister or making horns behind your brother’s head when someone points a camera in your direction, thread your needle and make Sibling Blocks. One siblings makes a red X’s on a block, then another siblings adds the second red X. Depending on how many siblings you have, it may take several blocks before everybody has made a block with each sibling (and that’s just fie with me).

Kitty Sorgen’s family work on the blocks for their family quilt

a white quilt covered with pairs of red X's

Quilt #31: The Sorgen / Urbach Famliy Quilt

FAMILIES

When Grandpa takes an afternoon nap and snores so loudly you can’t hear yourself think, take a cue from Kitty Sorgen and get everybody involved in making your own family quilt. Everybody makes their own blocks OR pairs of family members can make collaborative blocks, each making on red X. With no minimum or maximum number of blocks, you can put up needle and thread when ready. After the holiday, you or another willing soul can turn these family blocks into a quilt for The 70273 Project.

A collaborative block made by Nancy and me. She drew in red, then I printed her drawing on fabric and used it to make the two red X’s.

COLLABORATE WITH ME (JEANNE)

And when you reach the point where it’s grab some time to yourself or climb the walls and swing from the chandelier, quietly pick up your cloth, scissors, and thread and go make blocks with only one red X then send them to me and I’ll add the second red X.

IMPORTANT THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW

~ Blocks are made per usual – in one of three sizes with two (or one if we’re collaborating) red X’s.

~ Just like always, everybody needs a Provenance Form.

~ Please make a note in the upper righthand corner of each Provenance Form and let me know if the blocks are to go into The Grands Quilt; The Siblings Quilt; or the I Collaborated with Jeanne Quilt.

~ If you opt to make a family quilt and can’t find anybody to piece and quilt it, make a note in the upper righthand corner of each Provenance Form that this is the _________ Family Quilt then send me the blocks and Provenance Forms and I’ll find a volunteer. (Who will become like a valued member of your family. Trust me on that.)

~ Right this way for more information about Collaborating with Me.

~ For more information about Grandparents/Grandchildren Blocks and Family Quilts, go here and here.

~ Go here to find out more about making Siblings Blocks.

Now, go enjoy your time together.

Oh, if you’re looking for a gift for someone who has everything (related to you or not), we love being elves, so consider making a donation to The 70273 Project in their honor. Let us know if you want us to send them a handwritten note letting them know, and we’ll sure do it. And hey, thank you.

There’s Gonna’ be a Stitch-In in Harrisonville, Missouri on 1/28/2017!

January 25, 2017 / jeanne / 2 Comments

Hosted by The 70273 Project Ambassador, Denniele Bohannon of Louanna Mary Quilt Design, there will be a block-making party for The 70273 Project in Harrisonville, Missouri on Saturday, 1/28/2017. Drop by Pearson Hall any time between 9 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. and make a few blocks.

Do you have to know you way around a needle and thread to make blocks? “Absolutely not,” says Denniele, “If you are a stitcher, bring your machine, white and red fabric, and join us. You might want to precut your background blocks, though you’re welcome to cut them when you arrive. If you are not a stitcher, we have blocks you can create without any sewing at all.”

Men, women, boys, and girls – people of all ages – are welcome to stop by and commemorate one (or more) of the 70,273 people who were murdered for being imperfect. And 70273 Ambassador, Lori East, from Carthage, Missouri, will be there, ready to stitch the blocks you make into a quilt top – maybe even more than one top – so you’ll enjoy instant gratification as you see your blocks join other blocks in paying tribute to people we’ll never know yet refuse to forget.

“70,273 blocks is a huge undertaking but how can we not participate? There are groups all around the world sewing, painting, drawing, embroidering blocks to commemorate each life lost. Harrisonville, Missouri, it is our turn to help.,” says organizer Denniele.

Thank you, residents of and visitors to Harrisonville, Missouri, for spending your Saturday morning standing seam-to-seam with others to pay tribute to people who might otherwise be forgotten. And thank you, Denniele, for organizing this and holding the space for this goodness to happen.

I want photos. Promise me photos.

Using Inks and Glues and Fusibles

January 13, 2017 / jeanne / 5 Comments

Waiting in the doctor’s office gives a Mom plenty of time to stitch. I set out to make a block a day in 2017, but most days – even non-waiting room days – have been Lay’s Potato Chip Days when I couldn’t make just one block.

I have 28 blocks to show for the first 12 days of January . . . and none of them will up our block count. Why? Because these blocks for The 70273 Project (and more still to come) will be used to replace blocks that have already been counted and now need to be replaced because the ink used to draw the X’s has changed from red to purple and orange.

So I thought we’d talk a bit today about which markers to use when you’re drawing the X’s. The only markers I’ve used are Sharpies, and they have been good. I only used them at a World War II event last spring when there simply wasn’t time or space for people to sew. I had red Sharpies available in all tip widths, and there was no halo effect, and the color hasn’t faded. (Of course it hasn’t been a year yet.) I read on an art group forum that Posco pens perform well, too. Sharpies are easy to find in office supply stores, craft stores, and discount stores. Or, feel free to click on the item(s) of your choice below to shop from The 70273 Project Smile.Amazon Shop. It doesn’t cost you a penny more, and a tiny portion of your purchase price go in our coffers.
Big Chunky Chisel Top Markers, Red, Package of 12
Fine Point, Red, Package of 12

On the Don’t Use List are IdentiPens which are reported to have faded drastically, despite the quilt being displayed in a dark room.

At Thomaston last Monday, we glued the X’s down because that was more time efficient and because arthritic hands can often glue when they can’t stitch. I’ve auditioned several brands, looking for glues that are easily spread and remain flexible when dry. The glues that make my A List are:
Dritz Liquid Stitch (bottle)
Dritz Liquid Stitch (tube)
Aleene’s Permanent Fabric Glue
Aleene’s OK To Wash It Glue
Aleene’s Fabric Fusion.
You can easily find these in craft and fabric stores, or you can click on the links presented here or in the sidebar, order from Smile.Amazon, and support The 70273 Project.

You might also want to fuse your red X’s to the base. If so, I recommend Steam-A-Seam 2. It can be purchased as follows, according to what size you want your X’s to be:
1/4″ x 40 yard roll
1/2″ x 20 yard roll
9″ x 12″ sheets / 5 sheets to a package

When making blocks, keep in mind that these quilts will be traveling the world for decades to come – repeatedly being folded and unfolded – and attach the red X’s in ways that have staying power. And hey, thanks for continuing to make blocks and commemorate The 70273.