Design Wall Monday......It's been a slow week....

I just didn't have the inspiration to get into my studio much this weekend.  Lots of things going on here, plus beautiful weather and some gardening to be done.   But here's what I did work on:

I got 12 of my Little Monkey blocks done.....all 30s and 40s fabrics and some repros.  I inherited a bag of old dress scraps about two years ago; they are perfect for this pattern.

I also got the June Sew Red for Women block finished:

It's the "woven strips" block in the upper left corner.  I can see that twelve of these will make a lovely sampler quilt. 

I finished one of the flying geese borders for my mariner's compass, and am appliquing my Dazzling Dresdens to background blocks.  I'm using YLI silk thread and loving it....it just doesn't show.

I also got three quilts bound, but that makes for a sorta boring post.....like watching grass grow.....which is another thing we have around here.  I'll leave you with a photo of the view from my sewing room:

I'm sort of like "Mary, Mary, quite contrary".....I can sit at my sewing machine and literally "watch our garden grow."  We had squash three times last week.....you know what that means don't you?  Waiting for cucumbers, but harvesting something almost every day.  The blueberries have been incredible, we only have 6 "active" bushes, but we've picked more than 4 quarts already and more are ripening.

Have a great Monday....we're getting some rain here today, and I've got to trek into NoVa for some appointments, the dentist, and dinner with my granddaughters......it should be an interesting drive on I-81 and I-66.......stay dry, friends.....

Kathy

Work in Progress......a Weekend of Paper Piecing

I've been flirting with doing some paper piecing, printed out some New York Beauty patterns from EQ7, did a practice piece with some scrap fabric, and then found a Mariner's Compass pattern from Cindy Edgerton that I forgot I had bought. 

This was a good project for someone who hasn't done foundation work for a while, because the base pieces were fairly big, and Cindy gives great cutting directions for fabric pieces that allow for a bit of leeway.

I've got the center medallion done:

I spent most of Saturday morning organizing my batiks, so I could start this project without totally destroying my batik bin looking for matching colors:

I got all my flatfolds in one bin, and my fat quarters, 2 1/2-inch strips, and charm squares in a drawer.  It's so much easier for me to make decisions when I can see everything laid out in front of me, especially with batiks, that have so much variation, even within colorways:

I bundled up all the odd scraps and threw them in a plastic bag for string piecing, applique, etc.

I'm always happier in my sewing room when I've made some attempt at organizing before I start a new project.  Do you like to "clean up" before you start something new?  I should be so fussy about my house......... 

Today I'm piecing flying geese borders:  smaller pieces, lots of pressing, lots of trimming.  It's a pain, but I keep reminding myself that the accuracy that results makes me very happy.  This is another exercise in patience for me......it's the opposite of power-sewing 4-patches and 1/2-square triangles.  It's a good way to start the week.

Have a good day today; if it doesn't rain I'm going to get my swim in this afternoon.

Kathy

What I've Been Up To.....

I've been pretty quiet this week....at least here in Blogland.  But that doesn't mean I haven't been busy!  When I was little, my mother did not like it at all when I was too quiet.  It usually meant I was doing something "inappropriate".....and with scissors.

I was the "scissor child".....I cut off the straps of my Mary Jane's because I wanted flats like my big sister; I cut off the sashes from my sister's dresses because I was mad at her.  I cut out a big motif from the lace tablecloth in the dining room because I thought it was "pretty"....and I cut out a whole square from my mother's crocheted granny square afghan because I wanted to see how it was put together.  Frankly, I don't know why I could always find the scissors when I wanted them......I would have locked them (or me) up tight!

I'm still doing "inappropriate" things with scissors, but at least my fascination seems to have found some direction.  Although these days, I can do twice as much damage twice as fast with my handy-dandy rotary cutter! 

When Deanne Moore Quill of  Creative Sewlutions came to visit me this spring, she let me pick this Shenandoah pattern from her stash:

I had a beautiful piece of Hoffmann fabric in my "orientals" box......it was the challenge fabric from 1999 or so.  I've kept it all these years searching for just the right pattern to cut it up for, and this seemed to be it.  I'm pretty happy I played with my scissors on this one:

"A Little East of Shenandoah"

It was a challenge keeping all those narrow sashings straight, but it will pay off when Guy gets around to quilting it.

I continued my little exercise with Dresdens this week.  Here's what I have so far:

I have three more to piece from the sections I cut out, and my background fabric came last week, so I can get my blocks cut and start working on the applique.  I love to do these by hand; it's so satisfying when they're finished.

While I was cleaning up my studio (when aren't I cleaning up my studio?), I came across a pack of 1930s-style applique blocks that I won in a silent auction a few months ago.  I've decided I really didn't like the patterns, and was sorting the pre-cut fabrics to add to my "retro" bin when I got inspired.....the sizes were perfect for more "little monkey" blocks.....so, a little scrappy work got started, too:

I'm going to work with a more controlled palette this time, and I'm putting those little white 1 1/2-inch squares in every block for continuity.  You can blame this one on Bonnie Hunter (again.....!)

Were you ever just a little "too quiet" as a kid?  Come on, you can 'fess up!  Let me know what got you in trouble....time and again.  I sometimes wish my Mom was still around to say,  "Kathleen Ann, where are you and what are you doing?"

Have a great weekend......Nationals are in Boston this weekend, so we'll have lots of baseball to keep our evenings exciting....

Kathy

A Summer Picnic Tablecloth!

I finally got around to working on my "Ugly" fabrics from the In The Bag "Ugly Fabric Challenge" .  I got the top and backing done, and Guy is going to quilt it when we get home from our little "road trip" this weekend:

It's big enough to be a tablecloth on our veranda table, or a summer table-topper in our dining room.  I'm calling it "Picnic at Grandma's House" since it has a lot of 40s and 50s fabrics in it.  It was fun to be faced with designing something from someone else's fabric choices.  My favorite print that Pam sent me was this cute pattern that I used for all of the four-patches:

We're off to the Quilter's Unlimited show in Northern Virginia this morning; then a little shopping and dinner with friends.  Tomorrow we hit DC to see the Washington Nationals vs. Atlanta (with a Dierks Bentley concert thrown in for good measure), and on Sunday we're headed to the Eastern Shore to see our kids and (hopefully) have some seafood:   it's blue crab season, baby!

Hope you have a great weekend.....time for a little handwork in the car, I think!

Kathy

What Am I Doing?--Linky Party Tuesday!

I started to title this blog post "What I Am Doing" but "What Am I Doing?" seems more appropriate.  Once again, I've started a new project that has "leapfrogged" over other things I've thought about to take precedence.  I can blame Margaret for some of this.  She needed some fabric for her broderie perse project for our applique group, and I decided to loan her some of this fabric with lovely roses on it:

This is a Faye Burgoos fabric that I bought 9 yards of four years ago at G Street Fabrics, with the idea of making a Dazzling Dresden, or just using it as a backing.  Seeing it again, I thought I would explore the Dresden opportunities, and of course, now I have these:

These are twelve of the 20 sets I've already cut out, and I have enough fabric to do 20 more (or 30 if I cut a smaller wedge).  I decided that this would make a great hand-work car project for our proposed trip to the Southwest in a few weeks (we're up to 16 days traveling, so far, if we make all the stops we've outlined). 

Of course, when I told Guy what I had in mind, and asked him to give me some suggestions about background fabric, he was right in there with me commenting on fabric samples on-line, sashing, and layout choices.  I think I've created a monster ("do you think 4 yards of 108" backing is enough, honey....wait a minute, let me do the math").  Two hours and $90 later, I've got the background, backing, and sashing fabric due for delivery in a few days.......if I could only teach him to applique (or better yet, do bindings!).

As though this isn't idiotic enough, yesterday I just started playing around with my "uglies" for my "In the Bag" ugly fabric challenge.  I decided on some big Jacob's Ladder blocks to showcase my ugly print in the four-patches, paired with my coordinating prints in the half-square triangles.  Here's what I'm working with:

If nothing else, these will make a bold statement.  And, by the way, Guy quilted  "The Charms of Salt Air"  (yes, I named it, and no, it's not terribly original, but you get the picture).  I love the quilting motif coordinated with the "wavelet" motif in the print.  My honey is the best:

I'd better get busy......I've actually got some projects I was planning on doing that have yet to see the light of day......have a great sewing day!  Don't forget to check in with Connie at Quilting by the River to see what everyone else is working on.

Kathy

A Good Day's Work......Taking Time To Do It Right!

You may remember that about two months ago I was "gifted" with a charm pack of Salt Air by Cosmo Cricket from Connie over at Quilting by the River in honor of her birthday.  I was determined to use this with solids and white, and struggled for a while with layouts and block construction.  I pieced a lot of four-patches using various greens alternating with the patterned fabric. 

Even though I wasn't terribly happy with the first layouts, I kept on going (you have NO idea how many four-patches I made).  Yesterday I finally got the last of the center top pieced, and started work on the borders.  I'm a sort of "slash and finish it" kind of border gal.....but I was determined to make pieced borders that "floated" on the top.  There is no doubt that it was much slower, but I'm pretty happy with the finished product:

I'm really taken with the color palette here....quite outside my normal range, with a lot of muted colors contrasting with bolder solids.  Does anybody have any "naming" ideas?

With the remainder of the four-patches and alternating 2-1/2" squares, I made up a pieced back (another thing I admire, but rarely take the time to do), using up large strips of the same solids that I used to frame the four-patches on the top:

(Yes, the back is hanging in front of the top, which is showing through....reminding me I need a good batting choice to keep the front and back from 'shadowing'---ask me how I know that)......

It was fun to work on my own design, and I'm glad I took the time to work out the math and get those borders on accurately.  It seems that once I get the basic top done, I'm always in a hurry to "finish" and move on to the next project.  Does that ever happen to you?

I must say I am pretty satisfied that I let the design process evolve and didn't let myself be distracted by my "get it done" tendencies.

Over the weekend, I have in mind several projects that I've been itching to make more progress on.....my king-sized Summerbreeze quilt (yes, it's "percolating" since I can't decide whether I like my design or not), and I've started some handwork for an applique group I joined.  We're working on "broderie perse" as a learning project:

Here's my vase and flowers that will be eventually be appliqued down.  It's been a long time since I did needleturn.....

There are seven quilts awaiting bindings (ugh), so I guess I'd better get moving!  Looking forward to some sun after several days of clouds and thunderstorms.  But look what I got a picture of the other night:

Why do rainbows always fill us with a certain sense of wonder?  I know all about the physics involved, but I'm always taken anew by their spontaneous nature....they are just "there."   Have a great Memorial Day weekend, everybody!

Kathy

Another Puzzle.......Solved!

I seem to be stuck on puzzle quilts.  Last February I finished my "Puzzled in Provence" quilt, and Chrissy thought the pattern was a perfect match for her son, Zach, who is 12.  I started looking on-line again for the pattern, and found a downloadable jigsaw puzzle pattern at About.com, created by Janet Wickell.  She conveniently included sizes for a 9-inch block, which was perfect (45 x 63 pieced top). 

This quilt was so easy to cut:  3-1/2 inch strips cut into 9-1/2 rectangles and 3-1/2 inch squares.  It is absolutely essential that you lay out the quilt on your design wall, however, to make sure the interlocking "pieces" are correct. I finished it to 55 x 73 using 5-inch red star-print borders.

Zach's Puzzle Quilt

It's on the long-arm this morning, and should be done this week.  Almost all the fabrics I used came from a huge bag of "leftovers" that were on the Peddler's Table at VCQ Celebration last month (pick what you want, pay what you want.....I left $10 for a bag of pre-cut strips, squares, ends, etc., all in patriotic fabrics....).

I seem to be stuck on puzzles this year:  the Provence quilt, my Sudoku wall hanging, and now this.  Is there a message there....or am I just trying to bring a little order to my universe?

Today it's back to my "Salt Air" fabrics; I'm still playing with block design, and need to get a few more finished so I can experiment with layouts.

I'm going to link up with Jo at Jo's Country Junction for her "Try it on Tuesday" post.  Head over there and see what everyone else is working on.

Just a reminder:  there are only two days left to view and bid on the auction quilts for the Virginia Quilt Museum's "Little Quilts, Big Talent" fundraiser; go to www.benefitbidding.com, and check out the Auction page for VQM.  All proceeds go to benefit the Museum.  Thanks.

Have a great day........Kathy