Scrappy Rainbow Wrap-Up for 2022

2022 was my 10th year of participating in the Rainbow Scrap Challenge, hosted by Angela at soscrappy. I love the combination of the limitations imposed by monthly color assignments along with the total freedom to make whatever we choose. Then there's also the fact that the RSC participants are some of the friendliest and most inspiring quilters you will ever find! Thanks so much to Angela for keeping us all motivated every week/month, and to everyone else for the feedback and encouragement.

It felt like my RSC projects were somewhat neglected this year, but as I started looking back at photos and blog posts, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I got done. I started the year with three new RSC projects, plus a few others that carried over from last year.

1. Charm Baskets was my favorite new RSC project for 2022. I made over 200 basket blocks, 4" finished size, for this quilt top.

Charm Baskets, 52.75" x 69"

2. The other new RSC project that made it to the finished quilt top stage was Scrappy Hearts.

Scrappy Hearts, 45" x 52.5"

3. The third new RSC project for 2022 was the Scrappy Rail Fence blocks. My original plan was to make these blocks as leaders and enders, averaging one little 3" block every day using that month's color. I got through four months before losing interest, but I might try again next year because I love the way they look together.

Scrappy Rail Fence blocks 

4. There were three projects that carried over from last year. The first was the Bowties 365 blocks, which were my daily block project for 2021. I joined the blocks into four sections, intending to quilt each section separately, then join them. However, now that I have a bigger machine for quilting, I should be able to put these all together before quilting.

Bowties 365, 44" x 58" (after sections get joined together)

5. Another ongoing project was the Applique Hearts. I always like to have a hand stitching project in the works, and these heart blocks were started in July of 2021. I have around 70 hearts blocks made and need to figure out how I am going to put them together, possible framing them with more scraps like the two red and one green block in the photo.

6. Glorified 9-Patch was a carry-over project that actually became a quilt top. I made the last sets of blocks in October, then joined them all together and added a border.

Glorified 9-Patch, 48" x 48"

One of my RSC goals for 2022 was to pull out a UFO/WIP each month, using the color of the month for my selection. This didn't happen every month, but I did make progress on several old projects.

7. My Storm at Sea Heart got the borders added during the red month, January, bringing it up to 30.5" x 27.5". I'm hoping to get this quilted up soon and put it up for Valentine's day.

8. In April, I combined some leftover pink fabrics from a 2014 baby quilt with pink solids to make an Uneven 9-Patch quilt, 42" x 49". 

9. In August I made a small quilt top from an old block and a collection of orange HSTs. This Orange Medallion quilt top measures 41.25" x 54.25".

10. I also pulled out a very old Snail's Trail UFO (from 2001) that had plenty of orange in it. I finished making the blocks, then got them joined together into this little quilt top (31" square.)

11. In September, I finished assembling the Spinning Boxes quilt top (53" x 69") that had been started as an RSC project in 2018. 

12. After buying a new Juki machine to use primarily for free-motion quilting, I went on a quilting binge in August and September, finishing off a few former RSC quilts. The first was made from Rainbow LeMoyne Star blocks that had been made in 2014. The quilt finished at 32.5" x 42.75".

13. The next finished RSC quilt was Crossroads in Green. This quilt's top was also made in 2014, and I got it layered and partially quilted that year, but then was stuck on how to finish the quilting. The new machine made life much easier, and I was happy to finish this quilt (44" x 56") and gift it to a friend.

14. I'm always happy to have a reason to make another baby quilt, and fortunately, our nieces keep on having babies! The latest was born in October, and I finished off one of the Scrap Dance quilt tops that I had made as part of the RSC in 2020 for her. This quilt finished at 39" x 46".

I think that's the end of the list of RSC projects from 2022, and I'm amazed at the final number of quilts and projects. By my count, I ended up with 4 finished quilts, 7 quilt tops plus 1 nearly done top, and 2 projects needing blocks made or joined together. 

Now it's time to finalize my plans for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge in 2023. Join me in checking out all the other wrap-up posts from the rest of the RSC quilters. I'm linking up with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge on Saturday and at Oh Scrap! over at Quilting is more fun than Housework on Sunday.

Happy new year and happy quilting!

Julie in GA

Best of 2022--End of Year Review

The end of another year is upon us, making this the perfect time for Cheryl's Best of 2022 Linky Party at Meadow Mist Designs, a chance to link up our top blog posts from the past year. Cheryl suggested some ways to choose our best posts such as most views, most comments, best tutorials, and favorite finishes. I'm going to include several of those suggestions. Each listing has a link back to my original blog post.

1. Most views: Rainbow LeMoyne Row Quilt. 

The blocks for this quilt were left over from a Rainbow Scrap Challenge project in 2014. I joined them into a quilt top last December, started quilting in January, 2022, and finished the quilt in early August.

Rainbow LeMoyne Row Quilt

37.5" x 42.75"

2a. Most comments (tie): Charm Baskets

Charm Baskets was one of my 2022 projects for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge, based on the pattern by Edyta Sitar of Laundry Basket Quilts. The finished size of each block is 4", and I made 15 - 25 blocks each month in the assigned RSC color, ending up with over 200 blocks total. 215 of those blocks were arranged in a wash of color, then joined together into this delightful quilt top.

Charm Baskets quilt top

52.75" x 69"

2b. Most comments (tie): Rainbow Accordion

The Rainbow Accordion quilt was my first entry in the Project Quilting Challenge, Season 13, hosted by Kim Lapacek at Persimon Dreams. The challenge involves making a project in a week to fit the assigned theme. The theme for this quilt was "All the Colors." I love the 3-D look of it.

Rainbow Accordion

21" x 29"

3. Oldest UFO: Snail's Trail

This project dates back to 2001, and it feels so good to finally have this little quilt top together. The blocks are tiny (3.5" finished size) and were foundation pieced.

Snail's Trail quilt top

31" square

4. Learning something new: Artful Improv

I joined two quilt guilds this year, and have been fortunate to take multiple quilt workshops through them. One of the most interesting (and most challenging) was the Artful Improv class with Cindy Grisdela in October. This project was way outside my comfort zone, but I was happy with the result and look forward to more improv play.

Artful Improv

26" x 31" 

5. Favorite finish: Boston Fiesta

This was another old UFO, started in 2005. The piecing was completed in 2015, but it was another few years before it got quilted. Then it hung around waiting for a binding, which finally happened this spring in order to enter it into a quilt show.

Boston Fiesta

60" x 74"

6. A new goal: more FMQ on Juki

I've been wanting to get serious about finishing more quilts myself, and this summer I took the first step by purchasing a new machine. I bought a Juki J-150QVP, a straight-stitch industrial machine that can also switch over to free-motion quilting. It has a very large throat space between the needle and the machine, plus there is an extension table behind the machine which is wonderful for supporting a quilt during FMQ. I'm still getting used to the machine, and even needed to have one problem fixed recently, but I'm so happy to have upgraded my machine for FMQ.

Juki J-150QVP

Those are some of my quilting highlights from the past year. I'm still thinking about plans and goals for 2023, and I look forward to sharing many projects in the coming year. 

Linking up with:

Best of 2022 Linky Party at Meadow Mist Designs

Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts

Can I Get a Whoop Whoop at Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Happy New Year to all!

Julie in GA

Design Wall Monday 12/19/2022

My goal to get the Ruby Challenge quilt top assembled before the end of the month is coming along nicely. Over the weekend I made the last of the blocks, then began joining them together into sections. Here are the first two sections to be completed.

I don't like sewing blocks into long rows, then stitching those rows together. My preferred method is to join the blocks into sections, then put those larger sections together. This method works well whether the blocks are set horizontally or diagonally.

Check out what other quilters are working on this week at Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts. 

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA 

Stash Report and Stitching Time 12/18/2022

It's time for true confessions on the stash report today. I tried to resist the Black Friday sales, but gave in and placed an order with Connecting Threads on the last possible day. The majority of my purchases were solids, with a variety of prints filling out my selections. Most of these are half yard pieces.

Altogether, the additions to the stash totaled 17 yards. The only usage to report for the week is 5/8 yard for the two Santa redwork pieces shared HERE. With only two weeks left in the year, it is unlikely that I will end up using more fabric than has been added to the stash in 2022, but I'm very happy with the current additions. Now I just need to figure out where to store all those solids!

2022 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:              .625 yards

Used year to date:     135.875 yards

Added last week:             17.0 yards

Added year to date:       145.5 yards

Net stashed in 2022      9.625 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 stitching time. Once all the new fabrics had been washed and folded, I spent the majority of my quilting time working on my guild challenge entry. You can see the latest post about that project HERE.

15 Minute Challenge for 2022: 

12/11 - 12/17          7 of 7 days

2022 Total        340 of 351 days

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

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Two Santa Redwork Finishes!

It has taken far longer than expected, but I finally finished the two redwork Santa embroideries that were started more than a year and a half ago. The first was finished off in a 5" hoop.

It had been many years since I had done any kind of embroidery, and it was fun to revisit this form of needlework. For the back of the piece, I applied a circle of stiff fusible interfacing to the wrong side of the red poinsettia fabric, then turned the edges and stitched it down.

The second embroidered piece is a small wallhanging that finished at 14.5" square. 

There is echo quilting around Santa and all his goodies. The border has holly leaves stitched end to end along with little clusters of berries. You can see a closer view of the border quilting below.

The embroidery was done on a piece of linen purchased at JoAnn Fabrics, and my stitching was done with #8 perle cotton. The silly Santa fabric shown below is on the back. 

The embroidery designs were from the book Just Be Claus by Robin Kingsley. I'm trying to decide which design to make next.

Linking up with:

Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation

Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts

Can I Get a Whoop Whoop at Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Peacock Party at Wendy's Quilts and More

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Design Wall Monday 12/12/2022

Quilting time has been in short supply over the past couple of weeks, but I was finally able to spend a couple hours at my machine on Sunday afternoon. I made five more of the star blocks for the Ring Around the Stars quilt, which will be my entry for the guild challenge in January.

There are six more star blocks to make. I also need four more blocks with the chains of white squares in the corners, plus twelve partial blocks with the white chains in only one corner. Fortunately, most of the parts have been cut and are ready to be assembled. I'm hoping to have this quilt top together by the end of the month.

Check out what other quilters are working on this week at Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts. 

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA 

Stash Report and Stitching Time 12/11/2022

None of the numbers for my stash report and stitching time in the last week were what I might have hoped, but it doesn't matter because it was a fantastic week! We spent several days in Wisconsin visiting family, topped off by an amazing party for my mother's 88th birthday last Sunday. The entire immediate family was there--four children and their spouses, 6 grandchildren and spouses/partners, and nine great-grandchildren, plus several cousins and friends. It was the perfect afternoon of love and family togetherness! I was so busy having fun that I didn't get any photos of the people there, but I did get this one beforehand.

My stash report took a hit this week with no fabric used and 10.25 yards added to the stash after a stop at Hancock's of Paducah on the way to Wisconsin. It's so rare that I get to shop for fabric in person these days, and I had the best time fondling fabric there. 

We also enjoyed seeing this granny square "tree" in downtown Paducah on the trip home.

2022 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                0.0 yards

Used year to date:       135.25 yards

Added last week:           10.25 yards

Added year to date:       128.5 yards

Net used in 2022         6.75 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 stitching time. We've had a lot going on since we got back from Wisconsin, including a party with my former co-workers and an early Christmas gathering with family here.  My quilting time suffered, with only three days out of seven, but it was worth it for all the good times we've been having!

15 Minute Challenge for 2022: 

12/4 - 12/10            3 of 7 days

2022 Total        333 of 344 days

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

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Stash Report and Stitching Time 12/4/2022

It has been a good week for stash usage. I used 3.75 yards to make three grocery bags from old fabric scraps. I also used 1/4 yard for the two Jabberwocky blocks shared in yesterday's post.

2022 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                4.0 yards

Used year to date:       135.25 yards

Added last week:              0.0 yards

Added year to date:     118.25 yards

Net used in 2022         17.0 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 stitching time. Most of my quilting time this week has been spent doing handwork on a travel project, but I have managed to get some time every day.

15 Minute Challenge for 2022: 

11/27 - 12/3           7 of 7 days

2022 Total        330 of 337 days

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

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

A New RSC Project?

This is a block I made recently while exploring ideas for a quilt guild challenge entry. The block is a Judy Martin design from The Block Book called "Jabberwocky".

I decided to go in another direction for the challenge quilt, which you can see HERE. Since I had already cut out a second version of the Jabberwocky block, I went ahead and stitched it up. I like this block even better than the first. It seems to have more of a 3-D effect with the darker fabric at the center.

Here are both of the Jabberwocky blocks. Seeing them together like this was when I started thinking about this design as a possible project for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge in 2023. I could make a total of 20 blocks, set them 4 x 5 with 1.5" or 2"sashing and a 3-4" border for a quilt that would finish around 55-60" wide x 65-72" long. If I made 30 blocks, the quilt would be closer to 70" x  82".

Of course, I have plenty of other ideas in mind for possible RSC projects. These blocks are tricky to cut and stitch, but making only 2-3 of them each month would be manageable. I'll keep it in mind as I make plans for next year.

Be sure to check out all of the wonderful scrappy projects at the Rainbow Scrap Challenge every Saturday and at Oh Scrap! over at Quilting is more fun than Housework on Sunday.

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Scrappy Grocery Bags

While going through some of my bins of fabrics recently, I ran across one containing scraps of old fabrics that my mother had saved over the years, many of them from the 1960's and 70's. My sister Karen and I had used many of Mom's fabric scraps to make three improv quilts back in 2015. You can read more about that project HERE.

In the bin with the rest of the fabric scraps were two large Ziploc bags with pieces of fabrics heavier than regular quilting weight. One set had a definite red, white & blue theme.

I decided to make some grocery bags from the scraps. Kate at Life in Pieces had recently shared photos of a whole collection of them she made in THIS POST. The pattern she used is from the Fat Quarter Shop, and it is available for free HERE. I was able to make three different grocery bags from the available scraps.

Bag #1 front

Bag #1 back

Bag #2 front

Bag #2 back

Bag #3 front

Bag #3 back

I used the same fabric to line all three bags, a wide backing fabric from Michael Miller called "Daydream."

The bags all look very similar, and the only way I can keep track of which front and back photo go together is by looking at the base fabric. Here's a shot of all three bags together.

I will be sharing the finished bags with my mother and sisters. I still have the second Ziploc of heavier scraps, these in much brighter, late-60's/early-70's colors like lime green, aqua and hot pink. I haven't decided what to make with these yet.

Linking up with:

Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation

Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts

Can I Get a Whoop Whoop at Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Peacock Party at Wendy's Quilts and More

Oh Scrap! at Quilting is more fun than Housework

Happy quilting!

Julie in GA