Seeing Stars QAL--Curvy Star Blocks

Over the weekend I worked on my second set of blocks for the Seeing Stars Quilt-Along, hosted by Melissa at Happy Quilting. Block #2 is the Curvy Star block, with Drunkard's Path units forming the center part of the star. Fortunately, the blocks are large (20" finished) which meant the curves were not difficult to sew. Thanks, Melissa, for getting us all to try sewing curves! Here are my two Curvy Star blocks along with the Double Stars from last week.

I'm planning to make a throw-size quilt that finishes around 60-64" x 80", so I only made two of each of these blocks. Melissa's quilt is 80" x 80". I haven't figured out how many of all of the blocks I will need for my version.

Time for the close-up shots. It's surprising how different the colors look in the two photos, but both blocks use the same two background fabrics.

I'm linking up to Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt, and Moving It Forward at Em's Scrapbag.  I'm also sharing my blocks with the Seeing Stars QAL link-up. Be sure to check out all of the wonderful projects that everyone is sharing! 

Julie in GA

15 Minutes and Stash Report Sunday 8/26/18

Last week was full of challenges, most of them centered around work, and it definitely cut into my quilting time. My only stash usage was 1 yard used for two Double Star blocks for the Seeing Stars QAL by Melissa Corey. These babies are enormous! The blocks finish at 24". There was no fabric added for the week.

2018 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:              1.000 yards

Used year to date:        50.125 yards

Added last week:                0.0 yards
Added year to date:         32.25 yards
Net used year to date:    17.875 yards

This week's numbers bring my usage total to just over 50 yards. My goal for the year is to use a total of 100 yards. That will be difficult since we are now almost 2/3 of the way through 2018. Maybe it's time to make a couple of quilt backs for a nice jump in the fabric used column.

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces has us tracking how many days each week we get in at least 15 minutes of quilting time. It was more difficult than usual to find the time and energy for quilting every day, but I did manage to get in at least 15 minutes each day.

15 Minute Challenge:  
8/19 - 8/25           7 of 7 days
2018 Total      231 of 237 days

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate, and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces .

Julie in GA

Orange RSC Wrap-Up

It felt so good to get all of the orange blocks for my three Rainbow Scrap Challenge projects finished early in the month. That is definitely preferable to procrastinating until the last week, then scrambling to get them done in time! Here is the collection of orange scrappiness.

Top left: 3 State of Georgia blocks for the Squared Away sampler

Middle left: 2 Rolling Nine-Patch blocks, Fat Quarter Shop 2017 sampler

Bottom left: 2 Spinning Boxes

Right side: 2 Scraptastic Stars

Since my blocks were done early, I pulled out an old project that included orange in the color scheme. My "Tell It to the Stars" quilt just needed the pieced border finished, then one last plain border added. The pieced border is now complete! You can only see a portion of the quilt because it is so large.

Tell It to the Stars, pattern by Judy Laquidara

This quilt was started as a block of the month by Judy Laquidara at Patchwork Times in 2014. I was doing great with keeping up every month until late in the year when we got to the pieced border. It was around then that I realized I had used the wrong fabric for my setting triangles. My triangles are all pieced from black fabrics instead of the blue/turquoise prints that should have been used, making the quilt top seem very dark around the outside edges. It should look more like Judy's quilt below--our color schemes are very similar, except that the green in hers has been switched to turquoise in mine.

Judy Laquidara's Tell It to the Stars quilt

I had been planning to just keep going and live with my mistake, but I know I won't ever be satisfied with the way it looks. I'm considering removing the black setting triangles and remaking them in turquoise. The photo of my quilt top shows one sample triangle in turquoise along the side. It will be a lot of work, especially setting in the new triangles, but I know I will be much happier with the finished result.

I am linking up with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge on Saturday and at Oh Scrap! over at Quilting is more fun than Housework on Sunday. Be sure to check out all of the wonderful projects that everyone is sharing! 

Julie in GA

Seeing Stars QAL--a New Project!

Despite my best attempts to resist the temptation to start something new, I gave in over the weekend and decided to participate in the Seeing Stars Quilt-Along, hosted by Melissa at Happy Quilting. The first block pattern was posted last week, and I made two of the Double Star blocks on Sunday.

Double Star blocks
Seeing Stars QAL by Melissa at Happy Quilting

These Double Star blocks are enormous--24" finished! Melissa's pattern calls for three of them for her 80" x 80" quilt. I'm planning to make a quilt that finishes around 60-64" x 80", so I only made two blocks. I still need to figure out how many to make of the other sizes of blocks.

I'm using classic Christmas prints for my quilt. Most of them date back to the late 1990's/early 2000's. My background fabric is two different beige prints of poinsettias. I hope they will blend together well, since I didn't have enough of any single background fabric that was suitable for this quilt. These individual photos of the blocks will give you a closer look at the fabrics.

The next pattern for the Seeing Stars QAL will be posted on Wednesday. It's not too late to join the fun!

I'm linking up to Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt, and Moving It Forward at Em's Scrapbag.  I'm also sharing my blocks with the Seeing Stars QAL link-up. Be sure to check out all of the wonderful projects that everyone is sharing! 

Julie in GA

15 Minutes and Stash Report Sunday 8/19/18

The stash-busting efforts for the past week were better than the previous week, especially since there was no fabric added to the stash. I used 7/8 yard for the border on my latest Quilt of Valor (photos coming soon), plus 1/2 yard used on the Scraptastic Stars for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge.

Scraptastic Stars, pattern by Melissa Corey

2018 STASH TOTALS

Used last two weeks:             1.375 yards

Used year to date:               49.125 yards

Added last two weeks:               0.0 yards
Added year to date:                32.25 yards
Net used year to date:       16.875 yards

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces has us tracking how many days each week we get in at least 15 minutes of quilting time. I'm continuing to do some stitching every day, frequently finding time for both hand and machine work at different points of the day.

15 Minute Challenge:  
8/12 - 8/18           7 of 7 days
2018 Total      224 of 230 days

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate, and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces .

Julie in GA

Orange Scraptastic Stars

It seems like I am ahead of schedule on my Rainbow Scrap Challenge projects this month. Most months it takes me until the last week to finish all of my blocks, but the August blocks are all complete! Today's selection is my Scraptastic Stars in orange. Up first, here is the 12" block.

And here is the 16" block. I love the light fabric--it's a subway map! (I had to Google it to figure out that it is from the Gramercy collection by Leah Duncan for Art Gallery Fabrics.) I got it at Gotham Quilts when I was in New York for work a few months ago.

I had already made two blocks in browns last fall when I was trying out this block pattern. Here is the whole autumn-looking group!

The Scraptastic Stars pattern was designed by Melissa Corry for the Aurifil Block of the Month in 2017. You can find the pattern at Melissa's website, Happy Quilting. BTW, Melissa also has her own quilt-along going on right now, the Seeing Stars QAL. The first block was posted on Wednesday. I'm trying to resist, but might have to join in on this one.

I am linking up with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge on Saturday and at Oh Scrap! over at Quilting is more fun than Housework on Sunday. Be sure to check out all of the wonderful projects that everyone is sharing! 

Julie in GA

15 Minutes to Stitch and Stash Report Sunday 8/12/18

This week's stash report shows some movement of fabric both in and out of the stash. Unfortunately, the incoming amount was much greater that outgoing. There was 7.75 yards added to the stash thanks to a recent sale at Connecting Threads. I was ordering some batting from them, and somehow a whole pile of fabric ended up in the box too! 

The outgoing fabric was used to make these blocks for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge Squared Away sampler--7/8 yards used.

2018 STASH TOTALS

Used last two weeks:             .875 yards

Used year to date:               47.75 yards

Added last two weeks:            7.75 yards
Added year to date:              32.25 yards
Net used year to date:       15.5 yards

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces has us tracking how many days each week we get in at least 15 minutes of quilting time. Some of my quilting time last week was spent pulling together fabrics for a new project that I might start soon. I'm trying to resist starting anything else, but might not be able to resist joining a new quilt-along.

15 Minute Challenge:  
8/5 - 8/11             7 of 7 days
2018 Total      217 of 223 days

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate, and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces .

Julie in GA

Squared Away in Orange

Our colors for August at the Rainbow Scrap Challenge are orange and brown, and the new block for the RSC Squared Away sampler is called State of Georgia, a pattern from 1935. I made three blocks from my orange scraps and strips.

State of Georgia blocks
pattern at The Academic Quilter

After that it was time to check out all the colors together on the design wall. Making these blocks every month has taught me that they look best if I use very light or bright colors that pop against the grey background. There are a couple of blocks from early in the year that don't have the same liveliness to them as the rest, but overall I am happy with the group as a whole.

The taupe fabric with polka dots that you see between and around my blocks is the flannel design wall, not a planned part of the quilt. The current idea is to add narrow sashing of the same grey print as the background, if there is enough. It's looking like I might end up with enough blocks to make two kid-sized quilts. My blocks finish at 7.5", and 20 blocks with 1.5" sashing would make a quilt center that measures 37.5" x 46.5" (at least, I think that's right!)

I am linking up with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge on Saturday and at Oh Scrap! over at Quilting is more fun than Housework on Sunday. Be sure to check out all of the wonderful projects that everyone is sharing! 

Julie in GA

Getting Closer!

I didn't quite reach my goal of having this quilt top finished by Monday, but I did get very close. All of the full, half, and quarter blocks were made last week, and over the weekend they all got joined together. All that's left is the border!

Double Delight Stars, pattern by Lynne Hagmeier
(I changed her block size from 6" to 12")

The striped fabric on the left side in the photo will become the border for this quilt. The center measures approximately 51" x 68", and I am planning to add a 3.5 - 4" border.

I'm linking up to Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt, and Moving It Forward at Em's Scrapbag.  Be sure to check out all of the wonderful projects that everyone is sharing! 

Julie in GA

Stash Report, 15 Minutes to Stitch and Slow Stitching Sunday 8/5/18

It looks like I missed posting my stash report last week. There must not have been anything to report. This week I used 1.875 yards to make the rest of the full and partial blocks for the Musical Stars QOV. Those are in the process of being joined together, and I hope to have a finished quilt top soon. No new fabric was added, but I do have some that will be arriving soon.

2018 STASH TOTALS

Used last two weeks:          1.875 yards

Used year to date:            46.875 yards

Added last two weeks:            0.0 yards
Added year to date:              24.5 yards
Net used year to date:    22.375 yards

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces has us tracking how many days each week we get in at least 15 minutes of quilting time. I keep stitching away every single day on a variety of projects!

15 Minute Challenge:  
7/22 - 8/5         14 of 14 days
2018 Total      210 of 216 days

Kathy's Quilts hosts the Slow Sunday Stitching party every week "where we celebrate all types of hand stitching including cross stitch, embroidery, hand piecing, knitting, crochet, rug making, english paper piecing, applique, hand quilting, etc." Yesterday was the monthly gathering of our English paper piecing group, and this is one of my current hand-stitching projects.

I am almost halfway done with adding the extra points around the outside edges. After that, it will get appliqued to the background. I have the perfect print to use as a border, but it is hiding somewhere in the disaster area known as my sewing room. I hope I run across it soon!

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate, and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch challenge at Life in Pieces and the Slow Sunday Stitching party at Kathy's Quilts.

Julie in GA

A Rainbow of Spinning Boxes

Orange is the new color of the month for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. I love the zing that orange adds to scrappy quilts. My collection of orange scraps isn't huge, but I had plenty to choose from to make two Spinning Boxes blocks.

Spinning Boxes, tutorial HERE

One of my design walls was empty, giving me the perfect opportunity to take a look at the entire collection of Spinning Boxes blocks. My blocks finish at 10", and I have been making them since early February. I have been thinking about possible setting arrangements, which will help me decide how many blocks to make.

My preference is definitely to put the blocks on point. It seems much more energetic and interesting to me. If I make 18 blocks and set them on point, the quilt center would measure about 42" x 56". That would be a great size for a kid's quilt. That means I only need two more blocks! Then there is the question of what to use for the setting triangles? That will be the next decision to make.

I am linking up with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge on Saturday and at Oh Scrap! over at Quilting is more fun than Housework on Sunday. Be sure to check out all of the wonderful projects that everyone is sharing! 

Julie in GA