Commentary about works in progress, design & creativity
This is not a difficult pattern, so it went together quickly. It was especially fast since I already had the striped triangles cut.
As mentioned, I used some mostly blue 16 Patch blocks for the alternate blocks.
I pulled out some older batiks for the back and this quilt top (and back) is ready to go to the Community quilt project.
After finishing Grey Strip #2, I put the 16 patches that have been waiting in the wings on the large design wall. This is the start to laying out another Quarter Square Triangle block quilt.
I used different stripes this time. I had some squares that were the leftovers from something that worked well for the size blocks I needed. This provides a different look from the others with the dark black triangles.
I am short of the same white, but will cut a different white. It will be fine and I get to use up more fabric. I think I can finish this before Sew Day. It would be nice to hand in two quilts.
Because it can’t really be helped, I have started the Improv color quilts for the black-grey-brown scrap drawer. These miscellaneous pieces will end up being two donation quilts at some point in the Color Improv series.
Ignore the pink and grey 16 patch at the top. Design wall space is at a premium these days.
As you can see I have a lot of black pieces from working on the black strip donation blocks. There is also a slowly growing grey piece that I think has promise. One thing I notice about it is that most of it is made up of squares and rectangles.
I am not sure if I’ll have enough to make two whole quilts, but we will see.
I am back to less than my normal number of donation blocks, but I have been working on two donation quilts, at least. I want to make 30 blocks a month, but I’ll have to keep working towards that goal.
I have started making green strip donation blocks, so my hopes for next month’s tally are better.
I am really pleased that I was able to finish the Grey Strip #2 donation top the other day.
I got all the blocks together and, again, the quilt was a weird shape – long and thin vertically. I didn’t like it, but I also don’t have enough grey scraps to make 4 more blocks. I know that is good news, but it didn’t help me here. I also really didn’t want to spend the time.
I decided that I would make the side borders larger than the top and bottom. The blocks are 4.5 inches unfinished. I cut the borders 5 inches unfinished and I think the top looks like it will be a useful size.
I found a large piece of grey last time I was rummaging in the fabric closet, so I used that for the back. I didn’t have to do any piecing! Yay. Next up is another QST 16 Patch.
The grey strip #2 donation top is finally in process. I finished the last two blocks and started working on it in earnest last week.
I used some leftover top sashing from the Black Strip #2 Donation top. Since I didn’t have enough I found some other random pieces from which I could cut a 1.5″ square. I think the variety looks very cheerful. I am not sure why I didn’t do that before.
I am now in the process of sashing all the blocks.
Erin kindly bound the Quarter Square Triangle donation top that I finished a few weeks ago.
Laura quilted it for the guild and now it is ready to go off to its new home.
I gathered enough donation blocks – almost – to make another QST donation top. Of course, the grey strip blocks are still on the wall in progress.
I have one block in progress that will be done quickly, if I can every sit down to sew again.
I made all of these blocks, but I scavenged two back from Peggy at Sew Day, so I didn’t have to sew quite so many. I wanted to get to making the quilt.
Now I am wondering how many quilts I need to make before I know I am making a series?
I put some of the last grey strip blocks up on the wall to make into a quilt. They have been there for about a week and I have made no progress.
I need at least two more blocks to make this square or rectangular and I have made a desultory effort to make them.
I really just haven’t had a lot of time to sew. The items I have finished recently have been done in small snatches of time. I’ll get there!
Yes, Metro Twist is finished! Hooray. It will go off to its new home after I show it at the guild meeting.
I am so thrilled with the fabrics. It was a good group to use. Someone asked me when I showed it at Sew Day if I had bought the pack of fabrics or if it came from the fabric closet. I was thrilled to tell them I made the choices myself.
Colleen did a great job on the quilting. You can see it really well on the back
It came out smaller than I remembered, but it will be a large wall hanging or a small lap quilt.
Well, Sew Day was fun. It was a Super Sew Day, which was great. Because the guild couldn’t afford the extra cost some of us met and slipped Mary C the money towards the cost. It was an intimate little crowd and we had a good time. The next day was regular Sew Day, so lots of people showed up, which was fun, too.
I have to say I was exhausted when I arrived home on Saturday night. Between the rain and wind, various errands, the art show and Super Sew Day, I was done even though I had fun and was excited.
Lots was going on at Sew Day. I only took a picture of one of Maria’s projects, but she was working on finishing quilts she started a long time ago.
This quilt, as you can see, is a medallion quilt using Carrie Bloomston fabrics. By the time we were done on Saturday, she had added a pink border with an arrow motif that looked great. I forgot to ask her if this was a pattern or if she was making it up as she went along. Regardless, it is a fun quilt that uses simple blocks to great effect.
Amy is the Energizer Bunny of the guild. She brings one quilt to various Sew Days and retreats and keeps working on it until she is finished. She has a busy job and doesn’t have a lot of time to sew at home.
I love how this quilt does not scream Christmas, but definitely has ‘is it Christmas or winter’? vibe about it. I love the use of V&Co’s ombre fabrics. The trees are wonderful. I especially like the blue ones.
Roz was working on my QST 16 donation quilt. I was so happy to see it getting a binding. This is the first one I made and it is so close to getting out into the world even as I contemplate and work on blocks for number three.
I am always thrilled to see how many people work on donation quilts. I know I often say that, but it really does make me happy. They are really a group effort.
I was thrilled that Friend Julie was able to make it both days. Since the weather was bad (rain on and off, and wind), it is always a crapshoot whether she will be able to get off the mountain. She was working on her Gypsy Wife quilt, which looks great. Jen Kingwell is calling the Gypsy Wife something else now, but Julie is calling hers Bohemian Wife. She is using a lot of bright prints and I can’t wait to see it finished.
Chris doesn’t often make it to Sew Day, but she was there both days and she was on fire, working on her blue Kaffe stained glass quilt.
I am not always a fan of stained glass quilts, because the black ‘lead’ lines ruin the design. Chris used blue and it looks much better than black would have. The Kaffe Collective, including my man, Phil’s, fabrics look really great. You can’t really fussy cut these types of quilts, but the large motifs really stand out and look great.
In addition to cutting out a number of projects, including the Hildegarde and finishing the Sweetbay cutting, I worked on La Pass and started to cut out another Piebald.
This is a really hard section, because I am trying to fill in the top where I refused cut off the giant and beautiful rosette. Now I have to add about a yard of border to that side.
I had to do taxes and vote on Sunday, so I didn’t get to follow-up on any of these projects, but I will soon.
This quilt is off to be quilted and, thereafter, to a new home.
The variety of blocks does not appeal to my desire for symmetry, but I feel like I need to be able to use the 16 patch blocks I make. I am thinking that I might change the color choices I make for donation blocks going forward. Still, I know someone will like it.
I don’t know if I started off strong or not. I am diligently using 2.5 inch squares as leaders and enders, so I am slowly working up a nice stack of blocks.
I started the fourth QST donation quilt. I wanted to use the pink 16 patches I had been making and this pattern is still interesting enough for me to want to make another top.
I am quite enamored of pink lately, for some reason. I am going with the flow and not trying to fight off the urge to use some pink.
I thought about using something other than white for the background, so I did a little testing. It didn’t really work out, so I ended up going with white.
I am glad I used my mantra “make visual decisions visually”. Even a solid (lower left hand corner) was a little too much pink for me. I could have tried other pinks, but decided just to get it done, so I cut up some white.
I wouldn’t exactly say I finished this in record time, but I did work hard to get it done and off my design wall.These quilts aren’t difficult to make. The blocks can take some time, but go together quickly if the strips are available and I use the leaders and enders technique.
This is the third quilt finished from my black-grey-brown scrap drawer. It never ceases to amaze me how little fabric it takes to make a quilt. This one, including borders and sashing took about 3 yards.
I showed it to Marty, who loves the nuanced subtlety of brown, at Sew Day the other day and she loved it. She wanted to know if I was a brown convert. No, no I am not, but I am glad I made this quilt and got rid of the brown scraps I had.
While we were looking at the quilt, I pointed out some of the fabrics I used in really old quilts, like She Had to Have her Latte. That is the fun of scrap quilts – seeing old fabrics and remembering a previous project.
I had a large piece of ‘tea dye’ colored fabric that was almost perfect for the back. I had to add on a bit more, but it was nice to get that large piece out of the fabric closet.
The fabric has postcards on it. I tried to read the messages, but I finally decided they must be fakes as some were impossible to read. That, or they were intentionally blurred.
Another project and more fabric out of the house.
I remembered that I used up quite a bit of brown for the Henry Softies.