Tag: Old Town Mystery Quilt

Finished: Old Town

Old Town detail with ribbon
Old Town detail with ribbon

I finished Old Town a few months ago, but never posted about it. I think my quilt holders have been busy or out of town. After winning Second place at the Fair, I realized it and knew I needed to get it done.

Old Town with Ribbon
Old Town with Ribbon

Old Town is finished! Yay! LOL!

Old Town is the 2024 Bonnie Hunter Mystery Quilt. I played along and sewed many of the blocks together at the BAM Retreat, then finished it up at home. 

Old Town detail
Old Town detail

Colleen quilted it for me and here we are. I was really pleased to get second place since the category in which I entered it (quilted by another) is packed. This was a much easier quilt to quilt than Patchwork Palooza since once I decided how to quilt a block, I just had Colleen quilt all the blocks the same.

Another Winner

I went to the San Mateo County Fair on Thursday with SIL#4.

Winner 2026: Pandora Charisma
Winner 2026: Pandora Charisma

I was shocked and amazed that the Pandora Charisma won at the County Fair. Lee Ann shared the news with me at Sew Day, so it wasn’t a surprise. I was, however, so excited to see the evidence in person. I am in wonder at the size of those ribbons!

Old Town with Ribbon
Old Town with Ribbon

I was also pleased that one of my quilts, Old Town,  won a second prize. While second place can seem like nothing special, this quilt was entered into a category where a lot of quilts are entered (quilted by someone else). After thinking about it, I was very pleased even with a second place in this category.

BAM members in general did really well! I was thrilled to see so many BAM cards on prize winning exhibits.

See previous winners.

Old Town Back

Old Town back
Old Town back

The back of Old Town is done. I have sewn the binding, so it is ready to be applied after the quilting is done. With all of these chores done,  the quilt is ready to go to Colleen for longarming.

I used a really nice wisteria print from Philip Jacobs. I had two pieces, which means I bought it twice, but I can’t remember where. The colors fit perfectly with the Old Town top.

The blue swirly prints were leftovers from the Half Hexie Star quilt. I wanted a little bit of that fabric on a quilt I will probably keep.

So, on to quilting. I have to arrange that, but hope to take another quilt at the same time.

Old Town Top Complete

Old Town top complete
Old Town top complete

I finished the Old Town quilt top over the weekend! Hooray! I am so glad it is done.

It is pretty pink. Pretty in Pink? I don’t think it screams ‘little girl’. It does remind me of my childhood bedroom.

Now just to make the back and then I can take it to be quilted.

Old Town Checkerboard Complete

Old Town with checkerboard border
Old Town with checkerboard border

DH was out of town all week with the Native Sons at Grand Parlor. I didn’t go as I had to work and hold down the fort at home. Instead of cooking dinner (hooray for microwaves!) I sewed and the Old Town second border is now complete.

I keep looking at this piece and marveling at how different it looks with borders. OMG! So much better. Who knew a border could do so much?

Moving Forward on Borders

Old Town - left checkerboard
Old Town – left checkerboard

I continued to work in dribs and drabs to get another border on Old Town. This one is a pieced checkerboard border.

I considered stopping work on this quilt at the plain border. I decided to soldier on because I already had made hundreds of 4 Patches.

I am amazed at how different the quilt looks after adding that checkerboard border. I know I only photographed half of the quilt. I stood and looked at it for a long time trying to figure out why that one border made such a difference.

Old Town Blocks Together

Old Town Center - complete
Old Town Center – complete

I spent last weekend putting the blocks for Old Town together. I didn’t have the whole weekend, but the center is now complete and I like the way it turned out.

I am not sure I put the blocks together in the order I originally intended, but I never do.

Next step is the borders. I have the HSTs sewn, but not pressed or trimmed.

Old Town on the Wall

Old Town - April 2025
Old Town – April 2025

Since all the blocks and sashing are finished, I put them up on my large design wall. They barely fit!! You can see some blocks for my next donation quilt hanging on the right side of the design wall.

I keep moving blocks around, but I am about to start sewing the blocks and the sashing together. The different values of the pinks and blues make various parts of the quilt stand out. I also think the different fabrics move the eye around the piece.

Old Town Sashing

Old Town Sashing - done
Old Town Sashing – done

I visited Cyndi for a Sew Day last weekend and was able to get the Old Town sashing to a good place. I had a lot of 1.5 inch squares to cut and then a lot of trimming to make a house shaped rectangle. It was a lot better to do all of that work with a friend. We were able to chat while I did the tedious parts and that was great.

I got out the Simply Folded Ruler** again to create the flippy corners of those house shapes. That ruler is a gem. I always forget, but it really makes those flippy corners easy to sew. I didn’t have to draw diagonal lines on the squares, which would have made the process even more tedious. AND there was no trimming afterwards which meant no opportunity to cut off the wrong triangle. I haven’t tried one of the Simply Folded patterns (actually Antler Quilt Designs). I remember seeing one that was interesting at the Granary, but thought I was too busy to buy it. I was surprised at how many patterns the company has. I remember them being kind of country colors and having weird looking angles, but that isn’t true. There are a variety of patterns, some with brighter colors and fewer weird angles.

The good part about Bonnie Hunter Mystery quilts is that she suggests different methods of making the various units. I was reintroduced to the Simply Folded Ruler** through this project. It is good to be reminded of how I can use different tools.

Even More Old Town Blocks

Work has been very busy. It is stressful and I have been sewing a bit at lunch and after work. I haven’t had much time, but my effort at the Retreat at block making has gotten the process down to a science. I can make each block in about half an hour. Still, it has taken me several days to make this batch.

With this group, I only have four more left to make.

Two More Old Town Blocks

I didn’t have much time to sew on Sunday due to my caregiving duties. Between Sunday and Monday, however, I sewed two more Old Town blocks. I really like having my design wall on which to lay them out.

These two blocks were possible because, first, I sewed all the HSTs I would need to finish the block assembly. Now it is just laying them out and sewing the pieces together.

Matching the Star Legs

Old Town Block - color selection
Old Town Block – color selection

As mentioned, I made about 15 of these blocks while on Retreat. The pattern called for sets of Flying Geese and Half Square Triangles ( HSTs), so slapping them together any old which way didn’t work. As you saw in my initial efforts, I had to choose the sets carefully. Surprisingly, it mattered which turquoise Flying Geese star legs went with the pink ring made up of Flying Geese and HSTs.

I call this type of work ‘controlled scrappy’. The paper bag method alone doesn’t work for me. I want a scrappy look, but I want the quilt to be cohesive.

I ended up coordinating the fabrics that make up the pink ring of Flying Geese and HSTs. Then I would match the lavender so that it wasn’t too dark or light in relation to the pink ring. I got a lot of different looks. I think it will make the viewer’s eyes move around the quilt.

Retreat Progress on Old Town

Old Town Retreat progress
Old Town Retreat progress

I made really good progress on Old Town at the Retreat.

I was able to piece 15 (of 25 total) blocks. Each block has 69 pieces so that was a LOT of piecing. I was SUPER happy to be doing that piecing, I have to tell you.

Julie helped me put them up on the design wall so we could look at them.

Even with out much sashing, there is a distinct secondary design going on.

Old Town Retreat progress - detail
Old Town Retreat progress – detail

I sewed a little bit of the sashing and put that up as well, so we could kind of see what was coming.

I am excited to work on this some more.