Greasing the gears....

 Boy, it's been a very LONG dry spell here on the Orphan Train, hasn't it? I suppose I could/should hang my head in shame and slink away....but....I'm not a "slinker". So I'll just hop back onboard and carry on from here. Join me if you care to...*VBS* This blocks are a smaller version of the fungly blocks Tonya and Bonnie had us making, maybe 2 years ago. They have been sitting in a container taking up space and storage for long enough!
 I had a similar container with the siggy blocks from my Y2K swaps. I swapped 25 2.5" squares plus a siggy blocks with lots and lots of gals I had met on The World Wide Quilt Page. Didn't know what to do with the siggy blocks, so I made them into 9 patches, and then they sat...and sat...and sat! My recent mojo boost got me thinking and doing! I combined the two containers and now I have a small wall quilt for my sewing room.
  I do have lots and lots of orphans to play with, but I pulled out a couple of older projects, determined to make some progress on them, or finish them! I like to sew in the morning, with my cup of coffee and a DVD. I sew for about the length of the DVD episode(or two) and then get busy with my day. I decided it's the perfect length of time to make progress on an existing project. I could be(and love)doing more MAM blocks, no cutting or planning required, but I need some of these older projects to be GONE. So that's my focus right now. Senior moment and I can't remember if I showed the quilt below or not. It's a MAM quilt, with the lattice compliment of friend Jean, all pre-cut into 2.5" strips. This one went off for donation. I like the look quite a bit, and think I will be doing another in this style.
 

Clickity-clack....

the wheels keep turning and onward we go. The scraps from our quilt making never seem to end, and neither does the need for donation quilts. I've moved my mind over a piece because I've found I can't/don't consider them "charity quilts". I prefer to think of them in the context of "The Quiltmaker's Gift". That being "to a person who needs them". Our very productive rider, Sue, of From the Magpie's Nest has cranked more since I last shared hers *VBS* As always, they are wonderful! 
 "Twelve blocks make a top that measures 36" x 48". I wanted to make something big enough for an older child so sashing was an obvious solution. It took some time, but I finally found a light blue toile print that I bought for some other project but that didn't work out. There was enough to sash these blocks though!" Both tops are really lovely Sue, keep up the good work.
 The last picture is of one you may have seen over at Pieces From my Scrapbag. I've been making these Mile A Minute blocks as part of a Frugal Friday offering during Lent. Almost anything goes into these, the odd bits as well as parts of blocks. Almost nothing is too small to use *VBS*

If only I had time right now....

I know, I know..it's been 'forever' since I posted, and not alot seems to be happening with Orphan Train riders right now. I suppose the calendar has something to do with that...LOL If not sewing holiday gifts, then it's probably something to 'deck the halls'. In making the rounds in blogland, I see that Sue had dug out Christmas orphans, and thought about placemats for the DGD, but the block selection was limited. And over at Quiltville, Bonnie is hand quilting on her Orphan blocks quilt...it's slow going but she's making progress.
I noticed that Joyce has begun a project of making luggage tags from orphan blocks. She's not one of our riders, but it's a great idea and she has the link to the instructions. The book about Orphan train rider, Marjorie is making the rounds and is at Jeanne's house right now, and headed to Oregon next.Thinking about winter, which is a natural thing in WI, in December....this is a pile of flannel strings and scraps. Friend Betsy passes her backing trimming along to me, and I add them to mine.
There is a nice size pile of 6.5" blocks that I have already made, using up odds and ends and strings. I know that mostly we focus on using leftover blocks, but I make an exception for these. Like the Mile A Minute blocks,string blocks and Crumb blocks, it's a way to use up the odd bits and it makes a great snuggle or donation quilt.
And don't stand on the rules box, just jump right in and play...don't worry about if they go together, or are too bright. It's good to remember that a child doesn't have the same orderliness needs(in their brain)that some of us suffer from...*VBS* Trust me...IF I had time, this is what I'd be doing today.....and tomorrow and probably the day after!!

Easy Peasy Take on Strings...

but then, that's not an unfamiliar thing with Finn. This slightly unusal string quilt was given to the newly adopted son of my DD's friend.Nothing ever seems to make me happier than seeing a quilt in the hands of a child *VBS* But how the quilt came "to be" is the story today.
All those gorgeous flannel strings are the 'leftovers' from my friend Betsy making a graduation quilt for her youngest DD. I adore playing in Betsy's scraps...she has very good scraps!!!
Now I've been reading lately about piecing strings onto foundations, both paper and fabric. And I know that is traditional, but since I wasn't interested in laying them on the diagonal, why bother???? So I didn't. Just sewed the strips and strings together, any which way and width. Then I cut them into 6.5" blocks, cut lattice, sewed it all up and tied it with orange yarn.
Next thing I know here's DD#1 telling me that her friend L, has brought home a little boy(15 months old, I think) after a long wait. He was removed from his birth mother because of drug use. The availabity was 'up in the air' for awhile, but the courts in MN eventually terminated her rights to the child. Now he's officially adopted in a forever home. Strangely enough, his infant sister became available for adoption(much the same circumstances) a couple of years later. And DD's friend and DH were able to adopt her also. You might not think that is a happy ending, but as an adoptive parent of 5, I can tell you it's the least worst.

Dry Gulch or Box Canyon????

From my window seat in the engine, the tracks ahead look uncertain. A natural condition of the route perhaps...or maybe just that what our train contains is too meager an offering. I had hoped when I created this blog that it might enjoy the kind of journey of the true Orphan trains. Enough content to be necessary, a job being done, satifying results. I'm not very sure anymore that there is enough interest to warrent keeping this blog going. Some of us, like Tonya, myself, Bonnie and a few others have an endless fascination with the unique style, maverick approach, and 'make do' attitude of our ancestor quilters.
And I don't mind at all, taking time from my quilting and sewing to find, scan, crop and post OLD orphan quilts, occasionally. I love hearing from those of you that know of an orphan top or quilt to share with ALL. Sometimes I come across the orphan you are creating(by accident), and if possible it appears here for all to enjoy and learn from.
I am NOT, however, going to scour alleys and byways, and dark corners of world, nor dig in your closets to find an orphan. If you have them, or are paricipating in the challenge, or have made an orphan block quilt in the past, I occasionally need to get an email(like the one from Lucy yesterday) saying that you'd like to share it. If not, then I'm afraid our Orphan block train is running out of fuel to continue it's journey. It could be that it will just sit here in a dry glutch or box canyon, unable to move forward. It's up to ALL of us,not just me. Lately there have been NO comments about anything. And while the readership holds at about 150 a day, it's hard to tell if ANY interest in Orphan block quilts remains. We are coming into autumn here in the Mid-West Uunited States, and being an October child, it's my favorite season. If there is NO continuing interest, I'll just park the train here in dry country and move on to other things.
The pictures today are of: #1 a string quilt from Pennsylvania, Mennonite, late 19th century- 27" X 39". The other vintage quilt is also from Pennsylvania, Mennonite, late 19th century, 41" X 54". Both are in a book called Small Endearments by Sandi Fox. Published 1985 & 1994. The two pictures of modern quilts are:first-one of my many Mile A Minute quilts. Second-the newest Orphan block quilt. I did some monkeying around with the Bento Box 'idea', combining them in a couple of different ways..liked NONE of it, including the bright flannel. So, it's now officially ready for a border and tying. It will go off to one of the younger grandsons. It was all in a day's sewing!