I love love love your Country quilt! I like your use of squares for the background and the flying geese. The Bento Box is fun, isn't it?

SharonG/FL

(I'll be checking Conversations.)

They are stunning! The colors in the bag are fabulous, and (being an animal person) I love the design of the country quilt. The flying geese are a perfect touch. And how could I not love the bento box, with its Japanese name? The colors in it are wonderful, and I have decided I have to make one of those, too! There are all those 2 1/2" strips I've been getting in swaps, not to mention the FQs...

Are those little hearts on the ends of the bag straps actually buttons, or did you make them out of fabric?

Wow!!! I love them all!!!! I started a Bento Box and put it aside, you have inspired me to find it again!!!!
Rosa

Love them all. Especially the habitat quilt. Love the bear in the canoe! Great job on the quilting!!!!

I love all of them . I did see the Country quilt before in a mag. or book . You really did a great job !!
betty

Your Country quilt is GORGEOUS.

Actually, all of your projects are, but that one stood out the most to me.

~ Kit

WOW....Jean you have out done yourself. If thats not inspiration nothing is I love that Bento Box top. Kailee inspired me over the weekend to cut up my stash in strips she had a ball sorting. Did you have a pattern? How big are the blocks?
You are just a busy girl since you quit smoking.... Congrats

Nanci
Two months, two weeks, one day, 5 hours, 36 minutes and 58 seconds. 3049 cigarettes not smoked, saving $434.53. Life saved: 1 week, 3 days, 14 hours, 5 minutes.

Marvelous, simply marvelous!!! You should be very proud of your work.

Teresa

Beautiful quilts ! I love the colors in the Country Quilt. Do you applique the animals on before or after you quilt ? I couldn't tell. Mary in Va

Ohhh, very nice!! Love them all. That bento box is really an eye catcher. The country quilt's quilting is really nice! And the schlep bag...love the colors!!
Great job on all of them!

I'll add my admiring comments to this - I love them all! I love your bag - the colors with the touch of black make it look so classy. The woodland quilt is very striking - nice job! My favorite, though, is the Bento quilt - maybe the scrappy-look to it, and what looks like a basic, simple pattern, turns out awesome! I'll have to try one.

All your projects are beautiful but I especially love the Bento quilt. Great job.

I love the country quilt. Nice use of colors too.

Vicky

They're all great! I'm really into country/northwoods quilts, but love the Bento as well.

Bonnie

They're all gorgeous!! I especially LOVE the bento box quilt - it's one of my favorite patterns, and the colors are so much fun!

Love them all! You have been busy!
Red

Thank you ladies for your very kind comments. I have a great appreciation for the variety of projects posted. This forum helped me out with the applique. I really like my country quilt and I worked it out on a design wall. Machine quilting is a real challenge for me and all that cross hatching took so long but some things are meant to be quilted on the machine. Most of the fabrics used were from Moda in country colors.

The Bento Box was the most fun to make...it is so simple. Sharon Ferguson posted a picture and I knew I had the fabric for it. I used 3-1/2" strips for a 9" finished block. It takes 4 of these units to make a block. Each block requires (2) 3 1/2"x3 1/2", (2) 3 1/2" x 6 1/2", (2) 3 1/2" x 9 1/2". Block "A" light center, dk middle, light outer. Block "B" dk center, Medium center, dk outer. You must have a medium not a light with your darks or you will not get the correct box effect.

Biwako, I didn't know what a Bento Box was until I saw an ad in a grocery flyer with a special on bento lunchboxes. I do not like the quilt being square but don't want it bigger either so I am adding a 6" black oriental print border to one end and then binding the quilt with that as well. A friend said this would work. I will post a picture when it's finished....another machine quilting project!

I attached the handles on my bag with heart shaped button. I wasn't sure about adding the handles so this was an easy way to take them off if I didn't like them. The ends on the draw strings are lotus buds. I started out doing some quilting on the bag but it really didn't need any. I have a warm and natural batting sewn to the outer squares so it has enough body. These are colors I never wear but I loved the tropical print and black. So far I use it to go to the grocery store.
Jean

Thanks for the explanation, Jean. I hadn't thought about the quilt's being square, but of course it would be, unless you add an extra row of boxes, and then it'd be quite a bit bigger in just one direction. Sounds like you have a good idea for getting the right size for your bed. Please be sure to show us how it looks when it is all done.

OK, lol, now you've done it! I have to ask how the "lotus buds" are made.

It's all fantastic. Love the bag - very striking colours, the animals are lovely - like Laura, that bear is wonderful and the bento - well..... it's so pretty. I'm looking forward to seeing it finished.

I love all three projects. That Bento box is awesome and looks like a great way to use up scrap strips. Congratulations on a job well done.

Jean,
They are all great, but my favorite is the country quilt.
I've saved a picture of it for inspiration! I had never seen a Bento box, but it's lovely, too.
Carolyn

I love all three, you've inspired me to get moving and maybe make all these patterns. Thanks for posting these for us to drool over.

These are so beautiful! I love the country cabin and the Bento box. These are my colors too! I thought the maybe that was sort of like the 9-4 block, make a large block then cut it into 2 sections, then mix and match. Great job on them.

Oops! I meant to say cut into 4 sections (not 2). Sorry!

If you don't like the BB being square...why not add two more rows to it? Have it be 6 x 8 rows or something? just a thought...

I love, love the fishing bear!
:)Kelly - NH

Thanks again girls!

There's a bit of a story to the bear fishing...you will notice there is no water under his boat....that's to show how small our fishing holes are in the south....and the funky tree I sorta sewed together wrong....trees are very sparse here too!

Thanks Angea for your suggestion on lengthening my Bento Box and I would do that but I am totally out of fabric and it would mean 16 units. What I thought I was making was country is now Japanese, I want to add something oriental.....like the border and maybe quilt chop sticks somewhere on the quilt. I just love this top so maybe I'll have more fun machine quilting it.
Jean

Awesome job.. Love them all. grace