New Project, A Handy Tip and a Blog Hop Update

As I hate to be behind or late with anything,  I have started on my November Island batik project. I am making a blue and yellow quilt using the SunnySide Up collection along with some of the basics and foundations fabrics. I have made a lot of half square triangle blocks.  The stack below is forty of them.

I made these using Triangles on a Roll. When you are making lots of the same unit this is really fast.

Here is my handy tip: When I am working on a project and making pieces to put into blocks later, I use these cheap inexpensive plastic envelopes from the Dollar store.

It keeps all of my pieces together so they don't get lost in the clutter.  They will hold a lot more than you realize.  This one has 96 half square triangle blocks as well as 48 border sections.

The Blog Hop:

Here is Island Batik blog hop schedule for this week . A different Island Batik Spring 2019 collection is being featured each day. You should visit my fellow Ambassador’s blog hop stops every day to see what beauties have been created with this wonderful fabric.

Monday, August 19th - Petal Pushers

Joanne @ Unicornharts

Carla @ Creatin’ in the Sticks

Tuesday, August 20th - Quiet Shades

Connie @ Kauffman Designs

Vasudha @ Storied Quilts

Wednesday, August 21st - Seedlings

Vicki @ Vicki’s Crafts and Quilting

Mania @ Mania for Quilts

Thursday, August 22nd - Soil & Seeds

Gail @ Quilting Gail

Also you can go to the Island Batik blog post for the end of week two and register for this weeks prize, a bundle of the lovely collection, Quiet Shades.

Until Next Time,  

Stay Creative 

Comments are welcomed. I will reply when possible. Of course if you are a "No Reply Blogger"- I can not reply. Links in comments will result in the entire comment being deleted.

Under my needle

Today I have another project under my needle.  You may remember that a week or so ago, I basted this quilt.  Today I started quilting it.  I decided to start with the focal point - i.e. the lime colored diamond "square."  For that I did some special quilting to make it stand out more.

 For the rest of the quilt, I am planning to do a simple meandering/stipple somewhat loosely. (loosely for me, that is.)  As there are lots of bias in this type of block, the quilt doesn't lay very flat. So I am "quilting out" the excess as I go.

I have to say that the meandering is going pretty fast -or at least it seems so. I have about a sixth of it quilted.  If you don't remember this is how it looked basted.

Don't forget that this month the Island Batik Beat the Heat blog hop is going on.  There is lots of inspiration and a few prizes so try to read the posts from all of the Ambassadors in this hop. Tomorrow, August 14th, is my day on the hop. I hope you like my quilt as much as I do.

Until Next Time,  

Stay Creative 

Comments are welcomed. I will reply when possible. Of course if you are a "No Reply Blogger"- I can not reply. Links in comments will result in the entire comment being deleted.

Sashing and Cornerstones

With all the blocks completed in the Layer Cake Quilt along, I have been slacking.  But tonight I found some mojo and started working on the sashing and cornerstones for this quilt. 
I am using a mottled medium tan for the sashing with pieces of the fabrics used in the blocks as cornerstones.  
Originally I was going to use a yellow sashing, but I decided it would overwhelm the quilt as there is already a fair amount of yellow in the blocks. (The main fabric line is called Golden Afternoon) 
Here is how it is starting to shape up. 

The cornerstones with several of the block settings make for some interesting secondary designs.  See how there is a bit of a "chain" but then there is a non-square bit of the darker blue that changes it suddenly. I can't wait to get it all sewn together so I can see how it plays out. 


I apologize that the lighting in the picture is not great. My day job interferes with my quilting - but I couldn't afford to quilt without it. Ha ha. 

Scrappy HST become Stars

I have been having some fun today.  We started off with a trip to the grocery store. Since I am at a friend's house, it is a store I don't always get to shop at - it was fun.  I got a few things I can't get at my store. 


Then  we went to the Guatemalan store for a couple of items. I love shopping there. The store has no pretense and the staff is so friendly.  Then we had lunch at a Mexican restaurant that is always good. Items on the menu are not interpreted so it is always fun to go "I wonder what that is?"  The waitress is Latina but she was clearly raised in the USA.  I had to ask about a couple of items.  I got the Huarache. It was a plateful.   YUM!


Then back to the house for some real fun.  I got my plastic box of scraps from scrapbusting with my AccuQuilt GO! cutter(this was round two of scrapbusting.)  
I sewed all of these half-square triangles (HSTs) together. 

Then I sat down and used some of my scrappy HSTs and some 4 1/2" squares and made a scrappy star.  It looks wonky, not because it is, but rather because of the two green points that are medium value rather than dark.  

Won't these make a fun quilt?  I am loving it.  

Scrap Busting

It is amazing how scraps build up when you are a quilter.  Some, rare quilters, are able to throw them away. I am not that type of quilter. Some quilters have bags of scraps hidden away for the "someday" when they will use them to make a scrap quilt. 
Of course they keep buying fabric and collecting yet more scraps. I have been that type of quilter lately.  Early in my quilting I used scraps. People gave me scraps.  Now I have bags of scraps. 


Don't get me wrong, scraps are good.Keep your scraps, but don't SAVE them, bust them!  When I realized that I had to cut extra pieces for the quilt along blocks that I made too short, I made a decision.  I decided to cut some scraps while I had my AccuQuilt GO! set up and the value die was working anyway. 


So, I ironed a couple of scraps and cut some 2.5" squares while I was cutting the half square triangles.  Then, while sewing the pieces for the quilt along block, I used the square to sew on, sew off.  I normally have been using little scraps as "Thread Rats" to keep the points from clogging up when I start a triangle.  


I finished the extra parts of the quilt along block. The iron was still set up, ready to go. The bag of scraps was right beside it.  I decided to iron the entire bag of scraps then cut them up. 


I was surprised at some of the sizes of the "scrap" pieces as I was ironing.  I got my GO! cutter and some dies and put them out. I set up a scrap busting shop.


I started cutting. I cut 2.5" squares and half square triangles.  I cut more half square triangles in 3.5", 4.5" and 6.5".   I cut some quarter square triangles that will make a 4" finished block.  I even cut a few 4.5" squares. 


Here are the finished stacks:

I sat watching a movie and sorted them by lights and darks. There are a LOT of pieces there.  I still have more bags of scraps that need busting.  I will sew the half and quarter square triangles into square blocks.  I will sew the squares into four patches or nine patches.  Eventually I will have a truly scrappy quilt made as "extras" that were sewed in between pieces of other projects.  I won't have to cut the thread, or use a thread rat when I need to take pieces to be ironed, I will just sew a couple of these together and leave it under the presser foot while I go iron.  Then when each one comes out it goes into a stack for that scrappy quilt.  

As an added bonus, those scrap bags will start to diminish. 

How fun is that?

More Lanterns (and a ditty)

I had two more Asian fabrics for my quilt.  So I made these two blocks.  They are not yet squared up, but you can see how lovely the fabrics are. I am waiting for my other Asian fabrics that I am getting from Judy at Sew Fun Quilts   She has a great Etsy store with both items she makes AND precut fabrics.  She currently is selling one quilt kit that is darling if you applique.

So here are my blocks in all their glory.  I think this quilt will be AWESOME.  I am just trying to decide how it will be quilted.

Trust me, you haven't seen the last of this quilt! 

and here is the ditty! Yes me on penny whistle again.  Told you I am Irish to the core. 

Crumb Blocks

Thanks to Linda at Fiber Fabrications I was reminded to look again at Quiltville for some inspiration. I had visited Quiltville in the past when I first started learning to quilt. Part of the idea I had for String Blocks came from Quiltville. Today, I confess, I was sitting at the computer thinking "what can I look at next." I remembered that Linda had emailed me to tell me about Quiltville. I told her that I had been there and thanked her for thinking of me. Now, I am thanking Linda again. I went back there because I was just looking to see what I could see. (honestly I think the muse was trying to hit me and found a sneaky way in!)
I found this post on Crumb Blocks. As you well know, following directions is NOT my strong point when I am creating. So I am sure I didn't do it "right" Ha ha. Like Frankie said "I did it my way." I think they look pretty good. They wonkiness in places is allowed in this method. I don't know what I will do with these blocks, but I will use them eventually.They are 9 and a half inches because I have a 9.5 inch square ruler - and it was handy.



((( click the pic to see it larger on Flickr)))

I think they are fun. I can see making a journal cover out of them or just using them in a scrappy quilt. Some of the pieces are trimmings from a quilt top that I made that is still not quilted. Other pieces are from the quilt on my bed and various other projects. Leftover strips from a jelly roll work well in this too.

OOPS Boy oh boy did I mess up. I gave all that credit to Linda when actually it was Barbara at Pineland Patches that sent me the email. She told me how much she laughed about it, and I got a chuckle too. I think I am getting "old and forgetful" - or maybe it is just that the patchwork in my head is as Wonky as these blocks!

Barbara, Thanks for finding the humor in my mistake.