It’s cold – but that’s not news, is it?
After the big bullseye “discussion” I thought back to a year ago when we were doing that bullseye sew along and sure enough I found my partially sewn blocks. Remember I was doing a mini block? I’ll post those measurements.
Background block – 6” x 6”
First circle – 4” x 4”
Second circle – 2-1/2” x 2-1/2”
This might just be too wild to be good but I have enjoyed making Bullseye blocks again!
Hazel has had a fixation about getting into cupboards lately.
In the quilt shop –
In the barn –
She’s still on the rat hunt – which might be over soon because I bought one of those expensive electronic rat traps that I put in the barn just this afternoon. Oh, I hope we catch every single one of them! Of course I’ll let you know. Rat news, quilt news, weather, books, antiques – you name it, I’ll tell you! Haha!
Here are some great reader quilts:
These are Bonnie’s pattern which I’ve also made and think I’ll make again – loved the process!
And this one takes my breath away!
Thanks again for all your support – I have not heard from anyone “in the know” about the Bullseye issue.
Good Night!
Hi Mary, I just may finish my Bullseye this spring. We are cold also only 21 degrees today and down to 3 degrees tonight. Love the quilts and Hazel’s new resting place.
Carolyn b Shenandoah Valley VA
A plain block between your wild bullseye blocks would calm them down a bit. Like the one the lady showed 2-3 blogs ago.
Betty in Rapid City
Betty – hmmm – might try that!
I had a similar thought, but to use a plain sashing to separate the blocks.
I love the bright bullseyes. And the whole rat talk, and you know, when we get older it becomes the house, animals, dinner, medical issues. I try not to bore my kids with my mom’s, my grandpa’s, my dad’s continual chatting about their bathroom issues. Lived thru that, trying not to be them in this life. I hope the rat thing works, Hazel really doesn’t need to be catching them. Too many people use bad things to get rid of rats. Love the quilts.
The company responded about the bullseye in a Facebook post. Hmmm……
I saw that!!! I contained myself from making an ugly reply to it. Reminded me of a whiny child stomping their feet. No apology in my opinion or “I was wrong”. SMH
I’m interested in exactly how an electronic rat trap works- I think. 😉 Today’s post is right on target 🎯- get it? It’s cold down here too!
Mrs. Goodneedle – Hi, Deb! The trap is quite big, maybe 4” x 8”. I’ll put a picture on tomorrow. In the far end is a plate that shoots out the electricity when the rat stands on it to eat the peanut butter just behind the plate. Ick!!! It was $45!!! But I can’t use the poison in case Hazel would get into it. Now that was probably more than you wanted to know – haha!!
Mary, I was sort of afraid it was something like a death sentence to the electric chair! Yep. You’re right, though, you can’t be too careful where Hazel’s concerned. The price of the trap is shocking!! 😉
Beautiful quilts today!! I love the picture of the mittens! Hugs,
Love hearing about Hazel!! She is a riot.
Love all the quilts! I really like JoAnn’s purple and teal quilt…those are my colors! I’ll have to try the miniature bull’s eye when I finish my other bull’s eye. I just need to sew the squares together. Hazel is soooo cute!! I hope you catch all the rats too.
Charlotte, Northern California
When I read the previous blog post comments where it was quoted what that company put on their Facebook page, I had to keep reminding myself not to lose faith in humanity. Their post was so full of arrogance, showed no remorse nor respect for a fellow designer and lacked any ounce of integrity. Sure makes me leary of younger designers who have this attitude.
What wonderful quilts again to see and your readers make some very nice ones. I appreciate you showing them to us.
Well said Kathy, very well said.
Thank you Lynette. I am not a negative person but this is really drawing me into one sad state of quilting. If they have shut down comments on their blog and Facebook, another lack of professionalism in not having a worthy response. Stay warm today!
So true, Kathy. Maybe no one read them Winnie the Pooh or other stories that told of kindness, love, and faith in fellow woman.:) It makes me sad, too, to think they could be so uncaring of the time and effort Mary and Connie put into their work.
The rats remind me of my second kitty, Smokey Boots. She was a gorgeous gray tuxedo kitty who loved to hunt mice. She went across the street to the mill and brought a mouse back to our house. Unfortunately, the mill had put out poison and it burned her whole throat. I was 11 at the time and when the Vet called to say he had to put her to sleep, I was the only home to answer the phone. It was awful so I am glad you have the electric rat machine, Mary, and no poison.
Stay warm, everyone. It was 4* this AM. We’re getting more snow tomorrow. We were thrilled for the Bengals, now the Bills need to win:)
Those mittens are so cute. Reader quilts are wonderful. Thanks for sharing. I went to the Road to California quilt show today. It was smaller than usual but still an inspiring way to spend the day. Lynn from San Diego
Lynn Haines – my friends, Donna and Shirley, sent the picture of the mittens! They find the neatest photos and I’ve used many of them. I’m lucky they think of me and know what I like!
I’m curious about the rat traps too. When the trap does it’s job you still have to get close to it to dispose of the dead rat. Yikes!!!! I’m a chicken! I love Hazel climbing onto the shelving. My dog Dylan is afraid of hardwood floors. We have carpets and then runners and small rugs all over the house so he can get from room to room. Don’t know what that is all about, he was like that when we got him at the age of two. We love little quirky him, he is a sweetheart.
HI Dorothy, Our grand dog, Finn, is a miniature labradoodle and he is also afraid of hardwoods. I have to put rugs all over when he comes to see us, too. And, Buddy, the stray Maine Coon cat that we’ve adopted, is afraid of them, too. He slides and all and runs into things. He’s only 3.
I, too, love the quilt show and Hazel in the cupboards:) She’s a hoot!
It’s Cold in Wisconsin too. After dinner I enjoy washing dishes because the hot water feels so good on arthritic hands!
Went out for a Dr. appt. yesterday and then home again to a warm safe house. Working on old UFOs, need to dig out my bullseye to machine quilt it. You have me excited to get to that project again, love the colors in your small one.. Trying to finish #6 for this month.
Thanks for inspiration and pictures of Hazel.
You tell us about everything happening in your neck of the woods. Love hearing all about it. I went to the simple simon site and the bullseye pattern is still up on their site. Hope you get it all resolved.
Don’t you just love Karen’s bulls eye quilt! She had a great pattern and mentor whom she followed. Its one quilt I would love to make…after I buy the pattern from Connecting Threads!
Bobby, Marylabd
Love love love your wild Bullseye blocks. I had so many other quilts to finish but now I also pulled out my Bullseye blocks. I bought circles all ready cut at an antique store all three sizes. Like someone started but gave up! There were over two hundred so part of the cutting already done. Excited to see yours finished.
Mary, I went to the Facebook page of Simple Simon and I was not able to post a comment on their post about your pattern, or any other post on their FB page. Apparently they’ve temporarily turned off commenting on their page. I particularly took offense at their comment saying, they hadn’t heard of the designer they were accused of stealing the pattern from, I say BS. Any quilter worth their salt, young or old, knows of Country Threads and who you and Connie are. I suspect they didn’t realize you and Connie may be ‘retired’ and your store closed, but you are still active in the quilting world and have a large fan base. Shame on them.
Hi Mary,
I too am interested in the rat trap. I look forward to the picture.
And… I love your small bullseye blocks. Seems the Australian quilter’s are using lots of prints in all of their blocks too. It’s fun to see. Now I want to make a small one. Also I love seeing others quilts. The delectable mountain quilts are wonderful.
Pet Hazel on the head for me,
Susy from San Diego
Suzy, that was interesting to me what you said about Australian quilters putting more color in their quilts. I always found it remarkable to see many made quilts with the muted colors and had the best effects without bold colors. You could always spot a quilter from Australia at Houston show and I would look long at them like the ones from Japan for all their details.
Hi Kathy,
I love finding inspiration from others quilts. Today’s new bright and bold fabrics are real eye catchers! Happy sewing to you, Susy
The quilts are all stunning; I love every one of them. Hazel is so funny. Thanks for posting, Mary. 🥰
i found the cut-out centers of the bulls’ eye quilt i made and taught with. i’m going to use them to make a tad smaller one. the circles don’t all look like circles – some are just weird but they are the cut-outs. don’t put a timer on me, but i’ll try to do it soon. hang in there and try not to think about patterns over the weekend. patti in central florida where it is supposed to be in the 60s and dreary tomorrow and then dip down in a couple days to the 30s. ugh. i’ll be inside thank you very much.
The bullseye quilt is on my to do list. Are you sharing the pattern again?
It’s in our online store but if you want to send a self addressed stamped envelope (only one stamp needed) I’ll send it to you. I will also announce this on the blog.
Hazel makes my day! Thanks Mary for sharing her with us often, she’s a hoot!!
Mary, thank you for the rat traps! (boy that sounds crazy). I have a good friend who is having a major mouse issue in their home and can’t do poison because of dogs. The mice are eating the bait and not triggering the trap. She is beyond frustrated. 2 pest control companies and 0 dead mice. I’ve told her about the traps. Stay warm everyone!!!! It’s cold even down here in Florida. I will spend my day sewing – my sewing room is the warmest room in the house.
A good brand of mouse trap that works is, Briteen. You can order them on Amazon, come 6 to a package, not expensive. They have a cup for the bait, I prefer peanut butter, and you’ll know you have the right trap by the yellow bar on them. They have a powerful spring action and rarely does the mouse get away. We have a mouse problem every winter, have never been able to solve it so I keep traps set and the Briteen traps are the only ones that work. I’ve bought every mouse trap known to man as testimony! 🐭
Hazel is pure entertainment. I’m surprised you don’t have to put a cow bell on her to keep track of where she is going next.
I love your photos at the end of your blog. You have a photographer’s/artist eye. A while ago, I emailed you some beautiful cards that you made and sold at a quilt show in Chicago. I’ve never used them because I love your pictures! I emailed you about them. I also purchased some punch needle kits two years ago from Country Threads…Thank You again! And I’ve mentioned you in our quilt guilds’ newsletter for your great ideas like the “dirty dozen”. Many thanks! ❤️
Michele M – I told another reader that some of the pictures I post come from my friends Donna and Shirley. I will tell everybody because I can’t take credit for those but I do love to take pictures. I still love to make photo cards!
Please don’t stop! Thanks to you, Connie, Donna, and Shirley! Happy New Year and Happy Valentines Day❤️
I hate to admit it, but I also have an unfinished bullseye quilt project from last year. Sadly, I have a few other UFOs that I’ve been working on first but thank you for inspiring me to finish the bullseye!
Seems I have company with my unfinished bullseye! All this talk about the bullseye has inspired me to finish mine. Hazel is so entertaining and it’s good that Telly also keeps an eye on her. Love the quilts and the picture of the mittens!
Mary the picture of that last quilt! Oh my. It is absolutely beautiful. Thanks for sharing.
I love Hazel the rat catcher and the beautiful picture of the mittens. Both touch my heart in so many ways. Thank you for taking the time from you busy life to tend to the blog. Makes my day.
Thank you for sharing your life with us-both your ups and your downs! You inspire me to try harder! And we will always associate the Bullseye with you and Country Threads!!
Can’t wait to see your bulls eye quilt when it is finished. The bright colors looks so fun.
I love your bright colored bulls eye blocks. All of the quilts are great. It’s interesting to see the difference in the solid colors on scrappy mountain quilts. I hope you hear from the Simple Simon folks. It was single digit in SW Ohio this am; I think that may be the coldest here this winter. That’s a good day for sewing.
Love reading your blog! Your life is so different than my suburban life! Rat traps, Hazel and Telly, goats, chickens and of course beautiful quilts! Thank you for sharing so much with us.
Thanks for posting the Mini Bulls Eye dimensions. I have kept all my pieces I have cut out of back and will make me a Mini with them.
Thanks for the measurements and the mini bullseye motivation! I LOVE scraps! I probably have the finished blocks hidden away and not put together from that sew along…I had a birthday and Sweet Husband took his new mystery book and drove me to lunch and to the farthest away local quilt store which was having a sale. Now THAT’S a birthday present! It was a feast for my tummy AND my eyes!
And, that photo of the mittens says “Winter” better than anything I’ve seen! Bundle up and stay warm!
Karen Hamilton — I love your Bulls Eye quilt. It is so colorful. I enjoy seeing all the quilts. They are all very nice. It is warmer in southeast Iowa this morning……above zero which is good!
Oh, I love your mini Bull’s Eye blocks! Those bright colors would make a great kid’s quilt! I’m going to have to give this one a try and pull out all the blocks I have that haven’t made it into a quilt, yet. It’s such a fun quilt to make!
It’s a cold but sunny day here along the north shore of Lake Superior. We have lots of snow, but thankfully, no ice on the roads. My daughter is visiting to use my sit-down long arm machine to quilt a commission and I’m sewing on a couple of projects. I don’t often get the opportunity to sew with others, so today is fun. Music is going, cats are interrupting, the sun is shining–it’s a good day. 😊
Holly – oh, what a fun day inside with loved ones of all kinds! I have nobody to sew with except four leggeds!
Oh, those mittens. We would dry our mittens on the heat register and if one fell in, Dad would twist a coat hanger to the right configuration and fish it out! I think I will round up the mittens I made for our children (I could never pass them on or toss them out, darns and all) and pin them to the old hat rack along with the snowmen that sit on top. I even know where to find some twine and Mom’s old clothespins. We don’t have to worry about mice or rats, but then we don’t have a What-a-Hoot Hazel, Good Dog Telly, or I’m Fine Right Here (keeping the scissors warm) Colton either. Sigh – missing our kitties. The wild Bulls Eye is terrific! I love the bright colors on a day like today and thank you for showing the reader quilts, too. They are always an inspiration. Now to get back to my #6. Thank you for sharing and know that we all wish the best for you and Rick.
I have Quilts from Aunt Amy and have made 5 large Bullseye over the years. Have another going now along with couple other projects. It is my favorite… hard to quit making blocks! I have never separated with sashing etc… but good idea. Really enjoy the various pics of everyone’s Bullseyes. I have 2 cats and a Golden Retriever thus enjoy stories from all of you animal lovers!
Lyn – we’d all love to see your 5 Bullseye quilts!!!
Hi Mary – I love seeing Hazel in the cupboards – so cute! Those bullseye blocks are wild for sure, but I’ll bet it turns out great!
Hi Mary
The pictures of Hazel in the cupboard are the best! How sweet she looks and comfortable too! Your bright bullseye is just what we need in the deep freeze of January. Looking forward to more of those blocks. I have your Quilts from Aunt Amy book and started a bullseye with a few friends many years ago as a block exchange. It has remained a ufo but i am determined to finish it this year and it is on my dirty dozen list….again.
Have a great Sunday.