I volunteered to take over for Lynette creating raffle baskets for the monthly giveaway. I was a winner a few months ago and was blown away by the amazing array of things in the bag. Lynetee is amazing and I am not sure I can live up to her standards. I recruited a team
Sue’s Raffle Basket
Sue S. was the winner at the meeting on Saturday. I love the pouch. It has a handle/leash on it (not sure you can see it), which is really fun. I took a picture so I would have another data point.
I already have a plan and some supplies to make Persimmon Pouches, a free pattern by Sew Sweetness’ Sara Lawson. That will ensure there is something handmade in the basket/bag. I also found 4 books at Tuesday Morning for $4 each! They are great books for quiltmakers and I am pleased with that find. There is definitely some shopping that will need to be done.
If you win a prize at a quilt show or guild meeting, what do you like to win?
White donation blocks are probably not the best idea. I am thinking dirt. Still, I have a lot of white scraps and something has to be done with them. The first two are from a chunk that was large so they look very similar, if not the same.
Yes, I sewed the last piece (bottom row??) to the top and it is done. I need to make a back, but I haven’t done it yet. The top is 41 in x 43 in, slightly smaller than the others, but in the range.
The funny thing is that I have, perhaps, 5 orange scraps left and they are super tiny shards. I might as well just toss them out.
I needed something for leaders and enders at the Retreat. While there, I made donation blocks for the Community Giving Project at BAM.
I didn’t have it in me to gather up and bring the pieces I needed for my new strips donation blocks, so I grabbed my bin of 2.5 inch squares and used those. Peggy always appreciates more blocks and I have been wanting to make more for her. Since I have been focusing on my strip quilts and improv quilts for the community giving project I haven’t made as many of the postage stamp donation blocks.
I had a slow start, but eventually ended up with 6. I made these while I worked on the Running with Scissors tote.
I put another border (row??) on to the Orange Improv Donation top. I am nearly out of orange scraps. Truly, I have some large Philip Jacobs flower scraps and a few very small triangles left. This is the goal but the top isn’t square and I would like it to be, at least, square-ish before I hand it in. While figuring out what to do, I made those new donation blocks I talked about the other day.
I am not quite finished with the Orange Improv Donation Top, but I had to start on new blocks for leaders and enders reasons.
Color on White Block #9
Color on White Block #8
Color on White Block #7
Color on White Block #6
Color on White Block #5
Color on White Block #4
Color on White Block #3
Color on White Block #2
Color on White Block #1
I won’t have enough strips in these colors to make the number of blocks I need for a quilt top, but it is a start. I will either make chunks like I did for the Red Chunk Donation top or put the blocks aside until I get more of the right color scraps. I could also combine these blocks with the greys, but that might muddy the brightness of the quilt.
When I do a lot of work on Flying Around, a lot of work gets done on donation quilts or other projects. You already know that this Orange Improv quilt is currently on my small design wall as my leaders and enders project. I made a lot of progress over the weekend.
The size is about 34″x34″ right now. I like to make these quilts about 45×45, but I am really running out of orange scraps. I have 3 large, marginally orange at best, scraps left in my scrap drawer and a handful of scraps that SIL #2 gave me on Craft Night.
I worked hard during the past week to make this piece large enough to call it done. I am scraping the bottom of my orange drawer to have enough! I am still liking the way it looks.
The other day I talked about a new quilt top on which I was working. Over the weekend, I finished it and the back. It is now ready to take to the guild meeting for someone to quilt.
I can’t decide what I think about this color combination. It very much reminds me of eating sherbet at my grandparents’ house. I probably should have called this Lime Sherbet!
Orange & Green Donation Back
I did decide to make a back for this piece (more fabric used!). I pulled out several fabrics I didn’t think I would use and whipped one up. Amazingly, I didn’t have to fight to make the back for once. It went together really easily.
I am pleased that the green rectangles are off my sewing table and I get to add 3+ yards to my “Fabric Used” tally.
I had some plain green blocks, which I showed during the process of working on the Purple Strip Donation Top. Obviously, I cut a bunch and didn’t use them. They have been sitting on my sewing table since then. Recently they started to bug me.
Green & Orange Donation Top
I decided that orange would look good with that shade of green. I cut some oranges and have started to put the top together. This is not interfering with Flying Around, but I put the Orange Improv top on a brief hiatus while I put this thing together.
It might just be quick and dirty with no back or batting since I know the Community Quilt stash has both of these. We will see since using fabric is high on my priority list.
I mentioned the Orange Improv donation top yesterday and realized it had been awhile since I showed it. I just finished adding a major piece, so it was time to post it again.
It is progressing. The orange scraps in my drawer are significantly fewer than before. I have some large-ish pieces and am wondering if I should add them as is or cut them up. I like the look of the piece now, which is mainly small pieces.
Over the weekend, I worked on Flying Around and on the Orange Improv donation top. I am pleased with how the Orange Improv top is looking.
I am trying not to insert big strips in as I didnt’ like the effect with the Purple Improv Donation top. I am inserting bits of strips in. I don’t think the ones I have added take the focus away from any other part.
I took some packs of leaders and enders at Sew Day. I wanted to make a couple of blocks in between sewing the zipper pouches. I used the packs that Peggy always has available.
This is the first time I have made the postage stamp blocks in awhile and it was kind of fun, though my fabric placement was a bit off.
I spent the day yesterday sewing for good. It was the guild’s Sew Day and we made zipper pouches for the Grateful Garment Project. The project provides a variety of items to assault victims. You can read more about the project on their website.
31 BAM zipper pouches
We ended up with 31.5 zipper pouches. I have one that I need to finish, which is the other half. 3 of us made over half of them, but everyone contributed. Mary talked to me about a production line where we could more done in the same time frame. I like that idea and hope we can do it again soon.
I also like the variety we came up with. Peggy, the awesome, put out a bin of fabrics and we were allowed to choose the ones we wanted. This meant there were fabrics with which I had never worked and that expanded my horizons a bit. I think some of them will be suitable for men, too.
Green & Yellow Zipper Pouch
I chose fabrics I liked, but I concentrated on producing as many well done zipper pouches as I could in the allotted time.
The first zipper pouch I made was the hardest. It came out fine, but was a challenge to get oriented to the pattern. After making the first one, I consulted with Mary on the zipper. We traded tips and after that our zippers came out as well as can be expected. I made two using the green and yellow fabric combination.
Purple Zipper Pouch for BAM
The second one I made was from purple fabrics. I liked the various motifs and like to use fabrics I enjoy.
I wasn’t a big fan of the white zipper, but there wasn’t a lot of choice in zippers. Peggy bought a bulk packet and there were no purple. Needs must and all. I think it looks fine.
Dots and Stripes Zipper Pouch
Midway through I made two bags from the dots and stripes. I couldn’t, of course, resist the dots and the stripes were just great.
I like light interiors for pouches bags and handbags. Black interiors: blech! The light insides/linings allow one to see what is inside the bag. Light can also reflect on the light fabric to aid seeing what is in the bottom corner of your bag. I am sure I have said this before.
Dots with white zipper pouch
I had a lot of the dots, so I made a third pouch with a different interior. I liked the stripes better, but the light white on white (or maybe a very light pink) is fine. It does show the red dot fabric through a little bit, which is a shame.
By the time I made all of these pouches, I didn’t need a pattern. I was just making them over and over and refining as I went along. One thing I should have done was sew the lining with a larger seam allowance so that it fit inside the pouch better. It didn’t occur to me until I was almost done. I’ll do that on the last one.
