eventually it gets done

Formerly titled "Self-Diagnosed ADD". Lots of traffic to that site tells me that this isn't what they were looking for. I hope they enjoyed it anyway.

Lately it seems I have a very short attention span.  I can't seem to start and finish anything without moving onto something else 1st.  I still have a few of those borders to get back to. Here is one I finished a couple of weeks ago when I had lost my camera. Ain't it a beaut?  I'll tell you how I came up with this original design when I dig out the other pieces to illustrate the story.

Rather than work on the border project, I worked on those floral pinwheel blocks you saw a few posts back.  While getting ready for a class I started rummaging through my orphan blocks and scraps.   I pulled out a few boxes that I knew had odds and ends from a few quilts that I had made for the new book. I found the triangles  for the hourglass blocks I put together (see the last post).  Now that project is on hold. Yes, because it involves appliqué. I also found enough pieces for a few more Lemoyne stars.  Had to make those.

Then I dug out my orphan blocks with 1800 reproduction prints. It's a small but growing pile. All the orphan blocks are kept together. I decided maybe it's time I work with the orphan blocks because I have a pile at least 6 inches high. These are my orphan blocks.  I have almost as many in the pile for church.
I guess I am getting stuff done, but I don't feel very productive  because it is little bits here and little bits there. It's better for me and I am feeling pretty good. Hope you are too. Sew long.

Time Found and Time Lost

Well, October is always one of the busiest months of the year.  Usually the teaching and show schedule is quite full, and to top it off  I have another life outside of quilting. Imagine that.  It's times like these when I'm glad I have put some of my projects aside to pick up when I have a few minutes. This time I picked up scraps of 1800's reproduction prints.  I had a small pile of 1/4 square triangles and so I made these 3" hourglass blocks. Here we go. Another mystery.  My 1st thought was to set a pieced block in the center of 2 rounds of the hourglass blocks. Naturally. It is rare that I even think of applique.

Then I went to Electric Quilt and this is what I came up with. Seeing as this will only be a wall hanging, I won't mind using the cut-and-paste method of appliqué. Now I  need to decide if I want to have a strip of plain border fabric between the 2 borders of triangles.  And if I do, should it be a light medium or dark color. So far I'm loving it, and I think I will keep it small.

I did get another border on an old top, but didn't take the picture. My back was sore and I couldn't reach up and spread the quilt top on the wall.  Then when my back was feeling better, I'd lost the camera. That wasn't fun cause just the day before I'd lost my cell phone.  Of course, both were simply misplaced in the house. I don't like loosing hours to searching for misplaced items.  Sure hope that doesn't become a habit any time soon.  Picture taking is on the agenda for this afternoon so with any luck I'll show a picture or 2 tomorrow.

I could babble on and on, so I better go get some work done. Sew long.

S is for Scraps

You almost wouldn’t know that I’m a dedicated quilter. We’ve had such a glorious autumn this year that I’ve spent little time at the sewing machine. It’s been a week already and I can’t believe that I haven’t announced this, but I have in hand an advanced copy of my latest book, S Is for Scraps. It will probably be in stores the 2nd week of November.  Click the green link below the cover photo in the side bar for a preview of all the projects in the book.

 I have not gotten back to the borders on the 6 quilt tops I want to enlarge.  But I have made a few more blocks for the quilt I started last week.  I can’t say I’m real excited about it. These prints are just too busy for me. I've been adding a few more blocks with the darker more solid background. Naturally that is what I'd add. I like high contrast. A few more blocks and I can call it done.

I wanted to show you how I cut them out.  In Kim Brackett’s book Scrap Basket Surprises she instructs you to place 2 rectangles at right angles to each other and sew them together on the diagonal to make the 2 trapezoid unit. I prefer to cut and sew trapezoids.

 
I already knew the strip width was 2 ½ inches.  Then I use a half-square triangle ruler like the Omnigrid 96. This ruler requires that I use the 3 inch line. The hardest thing about cutting trapezoids is to always remember to cut with the fabric right side up and not folded.  Otherwise you will get the mirror image, and with trapezoids pointing in both directions your pinwheels will spin in 2 different directions.  Usually when I cut boo-boos like that, I make the blocks anyways.  But then those blocks are donated to church.  I guess I’m really only concerned if I’m short on fabric.

Another session of Quilt As Desired is about ready to start, and I have room for one more.  If anybody local to me is interested or knows of anybody that would be interested in joining me in learning to quilt,  give me a call.  These classes are handled a lot like classes at quilt shops where you work on what you want, and the teacher helps you.  Sessions usually start with show and tell, then I give a demonstration of some technique or pieced block.  Then you are free to make that block and do a sampler quilt or work on your own project after that.
 It's back to the borders for me. Sew long.

A new project

Thank you to everyone that commented on my last post.  It was unanimous to go with the brown border.  It should be on soon.  
I hold classes here at home sometimes and while I was waiting for the last class to begin I began another quilt.  My fingers were itching to start something new. How I decided so quickly is beyond me. I've been wanting to do something with a few multicolored florals I have.  I must have gotten them in some bundles I bought, cause typically I don't buy them.

I like a simple 2 fabric block for those busy prints. So I chose the pattern Mocha Swirl from Kim Brackett's book, Scrap Basket Surprises. I think it will work out great. I haven't been happy with that one pink rose print. Can't seem to find the right green to go with it.  But now I see that maybe the way to go is to use it as the background.
 Typically when I start a quilt, I pick out just about all the fabric and have a cutting frenzy. I think I might approach this one a little more slowly.  Not sure how big it will get with the florals I have. And I am not sure if I want to be selective in which blocks are next to one another.  Once I have made  up the blocks with these fabrics  I just might add some with more blue in them. I can always audition them too I guess. Sometimes I have to remind myself that is what the flannel wall is for.

Just the same, I can see putting this one aside to work on with others around.  It won't take much concentration. See how that happens?
Thanks again and sew long.