Work In Progress Wednesday

Eeek!  I finished all the road to fortune blocks and I actually have this put together and it is just waiting for quilting!  This has been  a work in progress since last March I think.  I had to make a few of these blocks in this sort of colour family for That Stash Bee.  It was so much fun that I had to make more.  This is a complete scrap buster.  Even the whites are scraps.  The thing is though, I seem to have more scraps than ever!  I don't know how that happens.  I keep making scrap quilts only to find my scrap bins are more overflowing.  They are possessed... obviously!

School started up again this week so my life has become VERY busy but good busy.  I am once again a weekend quilter. Linking up with Lee at Freshly Pieced for Work in Progress Wednesday!

On the barn wall...

Before September had officially arrived, I cranked out the September Lucky Stars Block of the Month from Don't Call Me Betsy.  Elizabeth sent out the pattern early , knowing that a long weekend might mean extra sewing time.  Like all the other blocks, this one went together without a hitch but they are time consuming.  Having the fabric precut and lined up in a the order of use saves my paper piecing sanity.  I also write on the instructions the fabric I am using for each piece to help with that.  I am keeping the fabrics that I am using for this project in a plastic shoebox so I don't have to go looking for them each time and so I don't have to look at the fabric for a whole month until the next block comes around.

I popped them up on the barn wall yesterday to see how it looks.  I waffle between a standard and a on point layout.  Here they are.  Looking pretty!

Linking up with Judy for Design Wall Monday.

August Fresh Sewing Day...

Well, what did I do this past month?  My big finish was It Looks Like My Garden.  I LOVE this quilt and it was wonderful to finally get a values quilt off my mental "must make" list.  I kept up with the Lucky Stars BOM and in fact made my September block yesterday!  Eek!  I am ahead of the game.  I also made 2 quilted tote bags using Elizabeth Hartman's fabulous pattern but I only have pictures of the one.  This is the bag I made for the Pacific Northwest Modern Quilt Guild Meet up which I could not attend but I did want to send a tote to swap.  What a great pattern!  And finally the vintage sheet quilt that I made for the school medical room bed.  Just a simple little bit of sunshine.

Linking up with Lynne for Fresh Sewing Day.  What about you?

A finish...

I made a simple vintage sheet quilt for the medical room bed at school.  I just cannot bear those scratchy grey blankets and cannot imagine being a wee sick kiddo having to cover up with one of those.  So... soft vintage sheets in 4 " squares is the answer. Totally random placement of prints as I grabbed and stitched without a whole lot of planning.   It is cheerful enough in yellows and greens but, hey, its made of old sheets so it is not going to be a catastrophe if something happens in the sick room.  And I don't have to say anything more because I am sure you know what I am talking about.  I bound it in a white and green vintage sheet.  It worked out perfectly!  It is backed in a lovely soft solid yellow sheet that is soft but still substantial enough that it will hold up.  In the spirit of recycling, I stitched together a couple of big chunks of leftover batting for the insides.  The quilt is quilted simply,  1/4" on just one side of each seam, with Aurifil 50 wt in white to create a grid.  You can see it quite well on the back down below.  Easy peasy.  And happily waiting to comfort sick kiddos when school starts up as it is already on the medical room bed at school.

Linking up with Amanda Jean for Finish it Up Friday.

WIP Wednesday

Last evening, I just had to do it.  I went downstairs at 9 pm and chopped up the 9 patch blocks for the Modernerized Disappearing 9 patch and put the chopped blocks on the design wall.  Husband actually came to check on me to see if I was okay.  I don't usually start chopping things up at 9 pm.  That's bed time, people!  I realize that I must have been a bit tired because the blocks are nicely placed in a rectangle but at a seriously evident tilt.  Oops!  Anyway, now that they are up on the design wall, I am going to examine this picture closely to see if I am happy with the distribution of colours and then get this puppy sew together.

As for other things on the go, I actually made another block for my Road to Fortune quilt.  Check it out, almost there!  I took a break for a few weeks as I was getting tired of making these.  Sigh.  But the end is near!  I see that Amy has released a pattern for something very similar to this and it looks really nice in the colours she made it with.

Linking up with Lee at Freshly Pieced and the Needle and Thread Network!

Pacific Northwest Modern Quilt Meet Up Tote Bag Swap

A week ago there was a big meet up of many Modern Quilt guilds from the Pacific Northwest in Portland.  Now I couldn't go (giant pout) but I did take part in the Robert Kaufman denims tote bag swap.  On Sunday, I met up with several of my quilt guild and I took delivery of the tote bag I got in return.  Check it out!

And here is a picture of Amy who made my bag.  Thanks Amy!!!  She says that the block is called Icky Thump!  And I do believe that is a reference to the White Stripes.

I started something new...

I saw something out in blog land that caught my eye.  That often happens.  Anyway, this morning I chopped up fabric and put together a bunch of 9 patch blocks.  But not your everyday average 9 patch blocks.  These ones have a whole lot more white in them than you would typically do.  Yep.  The disappearing disappearing 9 patch is in the works.  At least that is what I am calling it.  The story being that a clever quilter, Kristy Daum, decided to modern-up the disappearing 9 patch by reducing the number of prints and upping the solids.  That way when you chop up the blocks and reassemble them, you get a whole lot more negative space.  Cool!  So I used up some Nicey Jane fabrics, a little bit of Lizzy House and a pink print from a way back along with a pile of white.  12 blocks done.  Time to chop them up and see what happens.

Linking up with Judy's Design Wall Monday.