Ta Dah! - Block 5!

Finally finished Block 5 of the Benjamin Biggs quilt.

Block 5 - May 2014 - Mary Shaw, January 18, 1847

 Rather than alternating the bud and leaf as on previous blocks I decided to keep the setting of the original block maker - She set the buds so that they were facing each other on one side and on the other the leaves face each other. I have been pondering why she did it? It is the only block in the entire quilt where this occurs. So I decided that I would follow suit so that for future generations they can also be driven mad in trying to establish "why on earth did she do that?".

Blocks 3 and 6 are all prepped and ready to go on my rail commutes.

In the meantime, the World Cup has started and, as usual it is wall to wall football on television. It's all the hours and hours of analysis by the "experts" that gets me... It's only a game with 22 men kicking a football around a field trying to get it in one of two goals, for goodness sakes!!!

I have been saving up recorded programmes to watch and I have got out the "World Cup quilt" which makes an appearance once in every four years! Will I get it finished this time?

In memory of D-Day - 6th June 1944

May's flown by...

May just flew by and I just couldn't get my needle and thread out quite as much as I would have liked.

We had a big family reunion for my Aunt's 80th birthday celebratory Sunday lunch - roast beef with all the trimmings (including a humungous Yorkshire Pudding!), followed by bread and butter pudding with fresh fruit... yeah!

And then it was back to the marking, marking and yet more marking! I felt I was going to drown in it all.

The garden went to pot and where once I had a lawn, I now have a meadow, which Barney seems to enjoy!

But I did get one block finally finished...

Benjamin Biggs Quilt

Block 1 - Apple Pie Ridge Star made by Sarah Ellen Landers 

I was determined to use my theme fabric which is the floral fabric. I was beginning to have second thoughts about it when I realised that the background colour is very similar to the overall BG fabric, but I like it and so it stays!

The design is called the Apple Pie Ridge Star  - it's an unusual interpretation - with the "tear drops" in brown, it is usually all in one piece and resembles a fleur de lis design. It originated in the hills of Virginia, near Winchester (very apt considering my connections to Winchester, England). According to Brenda Papadakis, "the first examples of APRS appear in Quaker quilts [of the] 1840’s-1850’s", which coincides with the popularity of the Baltimore Album Quilts  of which many have a similar design, although many BAQ's were made by Methodists.

Brenda goes on to say that "during the 1750’s, apple trees were widely planted around Winchester for their produce. The high road name was changed from Ridge Road to Apple Pie Ridge by 1801. One of the legends about the renaming of the Ridge Road is that during the Revolutionary War, Hession prisoners of war walked north to the Ridge on Sunday afternoon to enjoy the delicious apple pies baked by the Quaker women."

Blocks 3 and 5 are already prepped and are in various stages of applique and now June's block has come out, so my needle and thread will be hopefully, whipping up a storm during June - they should keep me occupied whilst the World Cup is on!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a great month - stitching!