Commentary about works in progress, design & creativity
Leann brought the White Strip Donation Quilt to the meeting last weekend. It has been a long while in coming, but she quilted it and was finishing the binding. I am so pleased to see it done.
I finished the top in 2019, so it has been languishing for awhile. Fortunately, fabric doesn’t go bad. There is something about this one that I really like. Soon, I will have enough scraps to make another.
I took a break from making bags, Metro Twist and Scrappy Celebration to make some progress. Thus, I made some good progress over the weekend on making Pantone blocks.
I had already chosen quite a few fabrics, which made the task easier. Foundation piecing, not my strength, gave me pains on the first block.
The background of this fabric, a Martha Negley fruit and floral print from a few years ago, was the right hue for Pantone 4545 (not all the colors have names. Some only have numbers, which is a little annoying). I only had a half yard of this fabric and these fruit and florals don’t always have a lot of background. In this case, I only had a few bits to work with.
Of course, I cut a piece that was the wrong shape (remember: foundation piecing needs backwards and upside down pieces), so I had to Swiss cheese cut the last bit of background. Sigh. Fortunately, I don’t have enough of this to use for a back or a bag, so it really shouldn’t matter. Still it is painful to see one of these prints with a hunk out of the middle. Fortunately, this project (and Friend Julie) are worth it.
As an aside, you know how Tula Pink is doing Deja Vu prints? I wish Free Spirit would do them for Martha Negley as well. Maybe I should start fan club for Martha? I love those fruit and veg prints.
I went to town making blocks. I got into a rhythm that was only interrupted by not having selected anymore fabric. I thought I made a wider variety, but, looking at them like this, apparently not.
I was planning to make Flying Geese for Pantone 3985, a kind of olive green, but ran out of fabric. When I selected the fabric, I didn’t realize I only had about half of a fat quarter, so mid-block, I pivoted and made another Storm Center, which would work with the size triangles I had already cut.
I needed a template, so I cut the Pirate Black Storm Corner so I could use the triangles as a template, thus I ended up with four of these. In the grand scheme of the whole quilt it will be ok. It just looks a little odd now.
I suppose I shouldn’t have called this “August Progress” as it assumes I won’t make any additional progress, though I hope I do. I still have a number of colors to match and turn into blocks. Note they are all kind of dull, though looking at them like this reminds me they are not all beige.
I am also happy I made some good progress as I was feeling quite guilty at my tardiness. The hardest part of this project is selecting the fabrics. Aside from hauling the fabric bins down from the top of the fabric closet, the inks on the postcards seem to be different from the dyes used in fabric. I know that is true, however the actual hues and shades seem to be really different.
Ends n.17 (Plaid) is finished! Hooray!
I have used up that taupe fabric I used to separate the print strips. Hooray! That’s out of my life.
I have also made backs for all three Ends tops. I couldn’t not do it. I have another day, so I might make another one of these quilts to hand in on Saturday.
Trying to assuage my guilt at not wanting to make log cabin blocks, I started another Ends quilt top for the guild.
The plaids are from the Plaid Block Party quilt I finished in 2020. I am enjoying using these fabrics again.
I wonder if three quilts is enough to make up for my reluctance to make the log cabin blocks?
Ends n.16 went together very quickly. I actually worked on it at lunchtime the other day, then after work yesterday and I was done. Of course, I had everything out and available, which made the process go faster. Now it is ready for Sew Day next week.
Yes, I used that crazy turkey fabric from the pillowcases I made last fall. LOL!
I didn’t use up the taupe fabric I wanted to use so I started another Ends donation top almost as soon as I finished Ends n.15. I guess I am trying to make up for the fact that I don’t want to participate in making log cabins.
I received more Pantone blocks from Julie. Fortunately, I am not completely lame, because I have also been making some blocks for her.
I did not include the squares of fabric that came along with these blocks in the photo.
There are a nice variety and very cheerful, unlike the fabrics I have been selecting, which are dark and depressing.
The other day I showed some red and dot donation blocks. I brought them to hand in at sew day and Peggy immediately grabbed them. Very quickly, she came up with a block with my donation blocks at the center.
This is such a cheerful block. I love the way she used HSTs instead of Flying Geese to vary the color of the rays of the star. I would say the block is probably 16″ in this form, but I didn’t measure.
As the day wore on, Peggy continued to work. Midafternoon, she came up and showed me the quilt top made with my block at the center.
I know I say this all the time. I love this about the guild community quilt program. I can hand in something half finished and Peggy or someone will take it and make something fabulous.
I wonder if the Spiky 16 Patch #5 inspired her?
This is such a cheerful quilt top and was very quickly finished. It will also be good for a boy or a girl.
I finished the Blue Strip #3 donation top and back in the nick of time to take to Sew Day on Saturday.
As I mentioned, it was a weird shape, so I made an effort to widen it by making the side border strips larger than the top and bottom border strips.
It is still very much more rectangular than square, but more of a bed shape than a weird shape.
I’ll have to work on a blue color improv quilt like the others as I still have quite a few blue scraps. They seem to multiply when I am not looking. LOL!
Peggy, as usual, was very complimentary and happy to receive it. I plan to make another one using greys or blacks or both. The scrap drawer with greys, blacks and browns is very full.
After the meeting on the weekend, I cleaned out the Chubby Charmer I take to the meeting and found a bunch of stuff leftover from Retreat in the bottom. Among the items was a bunch of Pantone Project blocks that Julie made. She must have handed them over at the Retreat.
This group looks very Fallish/Autumn-like to me.
I feel terrible that they have languished unremarked upon for weeks. My only explanation is that I left for a business trip only a few days after I returned from the Retreat and really didn’t do a great job of putting everything away.
I have some fabrics chosen for some blocks for Julie and I am determined to get some done.
I am ready to put the Blue Color Strip blocks together. I have made all the blocks and laid them out on my small design wall, ready to sew. I hope to get the quilt ready to hand in on Sew Day in July.
I looked at the previous quilts and didn’t want to do the same thing, but also am not up for a lot of fancy piecing.
It came to me in a flash to add some pink cornerstones!!
I put the border on this quilt and made the back so it is ready for quilting now. I’ll be able to take it to the meeting on Saturday and hand it in.
It isn’t very exciting, but finished is better than perfect. I think the important thing is that I uncovered my sewing machine again and am sewing.
I used up some fabric for the back as well.
At Sew Day, Gerre was quilting the donation quilt I made in January. I am always super happy when the donation tops I make get quilted quickly.
I don’t know how much she was able to finish. Progress is really good.
I have decided (today) that waiting for a chunk of time to select fabrics for the Pantone Project isn’t getting selections made, which means I cannot make blocks for Julie. I think that if I select even one fabric I am much closer to handing more blocks over.
I am pretty pleased with the yellow selection. I know it doesn’t look exact int he picture, but the card is more of the same color in real life.
Last week, on my lunch hours, I selected one or two fabrics. This orange is also a better match in person.
Julie and I both acknowledge that this is more challenging than we thought it would be. Still, I think doing it in small chunks is worth a try. I hope I can make some progress using this strategy.
Julie and I meant to go over her technique for foundation paper piecing and we didn’t get around to it. That lack gives me a reason to get together with her soon.
These two are pretty similar. I remembered this peachy fabric, but had to get it out to see which one works better. I think I will use this fabric for the Coral Haze and find something else for the Blossom.
I started, sort of, the next Rainbow Strip donation top. I finished the first one in September of last year. Mostly what this means is that when I am delving into a scrap bin and come up with strips, I make a Color Strip block from it.
Recently I have been making blue strip blocks and I have a lot of them. I think I will have to make a blue Color Strip donation top.
I don’t know if I will use all of these since 6 is a lot of any one color. We’ll see.
This group adds to the yellow, green, grey and pink blocks I already have.