Stash Report and Stitching Time 7/21/2024

The quilting room saw plenty of action last week, with most of my time spent on the assembly of my version of the Lighthouse Inn Mystery by Modern Quilt Studio (read more about that project HERE.)  I haven't yet added up my fabric usage on that quilt. In between that, I was stitching Hollow 9-Patch blocks as leaders and enders, using 3/8 yard of fabric to make nine of them. I have a great collection of teal, turquoise and aqua fabrics, some of them dating back two decades or more, and I loved using them in these blocks.

2024 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                     .375 yards

Used year to date:                47.75 yards

Added last week:                     0.0 yards

Added year to date:               43.0 yards

Net used in 2024:              4.75 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 quilting time. Most of my quilting this week was spent on assembly of the Lighthouse Inn mystery, which requires careful concentration. By the end of the week, I needed a break and decided to play with a new idea, a herringbone design, which I shared in yesterday's post. I'm planning to continue with that one today.

15 Minute Challenge for 2024

7/7 - 7/13                 7 of 7 days

2024 Total          199 of 202 days

Success rate                 98.5 %   

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces. Thanks so much to Donna and Kate for continuing to host these link-ups.

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Scrappy Squares and a New Project

July is slipping by much more quickly than I would like, and my projects for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge reflect that fact. I was able to complete my set of nine Hollow 9-Patch blocks this week, using lots of squares of favorite aqua, teal and turquoise fabrics.

I also used some of my blue-green scraps to try out a new idea, a herringbone design. I like the way it's looking, but I'm going to run out of the light print before I get very far. Maybe there's enough for a baby quilt? Or I might go through the fabric stash again and try to find some other light fabrics to mix in. There's always the option to switch to solid white.

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

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Lighthouse Inn Mystery Update

Spoiler alert! For anyone considering doing the Modern Quilt Studio's Lighthouse Inn Mystery: if you want it to be a surprise, don't read this post. It is filled with photos of my blocks from that mystery. For everyone else, welcome to my latest project/current obsession!

There has been lots of progress on my blocks for the Lighthouse Inn Modern Mystery Quiltalong since I first shared them two weeks ago (see that post HERE.) At that time, all of the blocks were made, and I was in the process of slicing them in half diagonally, joining a dark half to a light half, then trimming each matching group down to a specific size. That was a nerve-wracking process with the knowledge that a wrong cut would mean needing to make new blocks. Here are all of my blocks after that step was completed.

There are 18 groups of square blocks, all of them in matching sets of either four or five blocks per group. Each set is trimmed to a different size, with the smallest blocks at 3.5" and the largest at 7.25". The sizes increase evenly in 1/4" increments. Then there are also those four triangle blocks at the bottom.

After finishing that step, I figured that we would end up framing the blocks with different size strips of background to bring them all up to the same size, and I was partially right about that. I was also pretty sure the blocks would be set on point in the final layout, and that guess was correct.

The final reveal of the mystery came last Friday. Rather than completely framing the blocks with background, they each get strips of background added to two sides. There were two different layout options we needed to choose from before starting to add the background. My first choice was the "Daybreak" layout, and that's how my blocks are arranged in this photo, with the dark side of all the blocks facing the same direction.

I thought that would be my favorite layout, but figured I should look at the other option too. This layout is called "Dusk.)

I loved the way the light and dark halves of the blocks turned into vertical columns in this version. This is the layout I will be using for my quilt.

The next step is adding background strips to the top two edges of the blocks as they are shown above. That means lots more careful work ahead! Since every set of blocks is a different size, the background strips will all be different widths. Then to get the right look for the layout, the strips have to be sewn to the correct sides. My background fabric is navy blue, and I can't wait to see how it looks with my sunset color palette.

It's not too late to join the fun (although it might not be much of a  mystery for you.) For lots more great photos and inspiration, check out the Modern Quilt Studio Patterns and Fabrics Facebook group (you don't have to be a member.) You can find out how to join the Lighthouse Inn mystery at their website HERE.

Linking up with:

Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts

Monday Musings at Songbird Designs

Midweek Makers at Quilt Fabrication

Wednesday Wait Loss at Inquiring Quilter

Oh Scrap! at Quilting is more fun than Housework

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA 

Stash Report and Stitching Time 7/14/2024

The main project filling my quilting time last week was the Sewcialites 2 blocks for our guild's Block of the Month. I used about 3/4 yard of fabric to make three different sizes of blocks.

I also used almost 1/2 yard for the Rail Fence Spinner blocks shared in yesterday's post. No new fabric was added to the stash last week.

2024 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                     1.25 yards

Used year to date:              47.375 yards

Added last week:                     0.0 yards

Added year to date:               43.0 yards

Net used in 2024:            4.375 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. Making the three sets of Sewcialites 2 blocks took up most of my time during the week. Choosing fabrics for all of those different sampler blocks seems to take a surprising amount of time, but maybe I'm just slow to make my decisions. 

15 Minute Challenge for 2024: 

7/7 - 7/13                 7 of 7 days

2024 Total          192 of 195 days

Success rate               98.46 %   

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces. Thanks so much to Donna and Kate for continuing to host these link-ups.

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Aqua Scrappiness

We are approaching the middle of July, and I'm just now getting going with my projects for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. I finally had some time available this week to start pulling out my aqua, turquoise and teal scraps, our assigned colors for July. The first set of blocks to be completed were the Rail Fence Spinners. I made eight blocks with the blue-green scraps, plus one purple block because I needed one more of that color.

I've made a start on my Hollow 9-Patch blocks too and should have those done before next week. After that, there will be the RSC Hen & Chicks Sampler blocks to make, plus the Laundry Basket Quilts Birthday Blocks and a set of Terry blocks. That list makes me feel a little tired, but I hope to get them all done by the end of the month. 

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

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Sewcialites 2 Blocks

A large portion of my quilting time this week has been spent getting caught up on my Sewcialites 2 blocks, which our quilt guild is doing as a block of the month. Actually, we are making two blocks per month. The 

Sewcialites 2 pattern includes instructions for blocks in three different sizes: 3", 6" and 9", and I foolishly chose to make my blocks in all three sizes. 

This month I decided to get the most difficult blocks out of the way first, and those are the 3" blocks. I've been using solids for these blocks.

Sewcialites 2, 3" Blocks #9 - 10

Next I made the 9" blocks with the dark background.

Sewcialites 2, 9" Blocks #9 - 10

Here are all of my 9" blocks together. The bright blue in the top right block really stands out to me. I need to either remake that block or be sure to use that color in more blocks.

The last group of blocks to make were the 6" blocks in reds and greens. I had fallen behind on these and needed to make last month's blocks too.

Sewcialites 2, 6" Blocks #7 - 10

The original pattern for Block #7 was a butterfly, which didn't make sense to me with the Christmas colors. Instead, I looked through a couple of books for a substitute and made the Christmas Star from Jinny Beyer's The Quilter's Album of Patchwork Patterns. That is the block at the top left in the photo above.

The block in this group that jumps out at me as being way too different than the rest is the one at the bottom left because it is so dark. That's another block that might need to get remade at a later date. Fortunately, it would be an easy block to make again.

I always like to get a shot of the different sizes of blocks together, just for some perspective on scale.

Sewcialites 2 originally ran as a weekly block program at Fat Quarter Shop from October, 2022 until April, 2023. All of the block patterns are still available on the Fat Quarter Shop's website. 

Linking up with:

Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation

Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts

Brag About Your Beauties at From Bolt to Beauty

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA 

Stash Report and Stitching Time 7/7/2024

My stash report for the past week reflects a much larger addition to the stash than usage for the week. I discovered that a stack of fabric I'd purchased on a Memorial weekend sale never got reported. The fabrics are shown below, mostly 1/2 yard pieces. The total amount added to the stash was 11 yards.

As for usage, I used 1-1/8 yard to make the many little Terry blocks shared in yesterday's post. It doesn't take much fabric to make such small blocks!

2024 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                   1.125 yards

Used year to date:              46.125 yards

Added last week:                   11.0 yards

Added year to date:               43.0 yards

Net used in 2024:            3.125 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 spent much of the week working on the blocks for the Lighthouse Inn Mystery by Modern Quilt Studio, which I posted about at the beginning of the week. Here are all the blocks after they got sliced in half diagonally, then joined back together with other halves.

15 Minute Challenge for 2024: 

6/30 - 7/6               7 of 7 days

2024 Total          185 of 188 days

Success rate                 98.4 %   

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces. Thanks so much to Donna and Kate for continuing to host these link-ups.

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Finishing the Blues

Our new color assignment for July at the Rainbow Scrap Challenge is aqua, plus all the other blue-green colors like turquoise and teal. These are my favorites and I will have plenty of scraps to play with, but first I needed to finish my last set of blue blocks for July.

These are my "Terry" blocks, inspired by Terry Rowland's colorwash quilts, featured in her series of three YouTube videos. These scrappy little blocks will finish at 3". 

I started by making one batch of about 35 or 40 blue blocks, decided I must have some more blue scraps around, and kept on going. It was quite a surprise to get them all up on the wall and discover that there was a total of 64 blocks!

I began making the Terry blocks in mid-February and need to go back at some point and make the green blocks for January. I've been averaging around 50 blocks each month and can easily imagine ending up with 500 to 600 of them. I haven't decided yet if I will include neutrals like black and brown. A total of 500 blocks set 20 x 25 would make a quilt that measures 60" x 75".

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

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

A New Modern Mystery

Spoiler alert! For anyone considering doing the Modern Quilt Studio's Lighthouse Inn Mystery: if you want it to be a surprise, don't read this post. It is filled with photos of my blocks from that mystery. For everyone else, welcome to my latest project.

Last summer was my first time participating in any mystery designed by Weeks Ringle and Bill Kerr of Modern Quilt Studio. That was the Summer Camp Mystery, and I had a great time following along and making a quilt that I love. This is my Summer Camp quilt top, inspired by the colors of the Southwest U.S. It was completed last August and is still waiting to be quilted.

There was another MQS mystery offered in January, but I had too many other things happening at that time to take part. When the new summer mystery, the Lighthouse Inn Modern Mystery Quiltalong, was announced, I decided to jump in again. The first step was choosing fabrics. The design calls for two groups of fabrics, a lighter group and a darker group. I decided to use the colors of a sunrise combined with a navy background.

The clues for the mystery started on June 1st. Each week we've been making a set of blocks with our light fabrics and a matching set of blocks (although sometimes mirror-imaged) with the darker fabrics. Here are my groups of blocks, week by week.

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

After four weeks of making blocks, it was time for a "Shift Change." All of the blocks get cut in half diagonally, following very specific diagrams for which direction to cut. Then each light half gets combined with a dark half to make a new block. I've barely made a start on this step. I started with some of the easiest blocks, the four-patches from Week 3.

After combining all the light halves and dark halves into new blocks, they all get trimmed down, again following very specific diagrams. This part of the mystery definitely requires a clear head and good focus. I sure don't want to cut something the wrong way and need to remake blocks. 

It's not too late to join the fun (although it might not be much of a  mystery for you.) For lots more great photos and inspiration, check out the Modern Quilt Studio Patterns and Fabrics Facebook group (you don't have to be a member.) You can find out how to join the Lighthouse Inn mystery at their website HERE.

Linking up with:

Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts

Monday Musings at Songbird Designs

Midweek Makers at Quilt Fabrication

Wednesday Wait Loss at Inquiring Quilter

Oh Scrap! at Quilting is more fun than Housework

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA 

Stash report and Stitching Time 6/30/2024

My stash report for the past week shows plenty of outgoing fabric that was used in a variety of projects. Some of these were actually done in previous weeks, but weren't shared on the blog until the past few days.

My most recent finish, the Orange Peel Rainbow quilt, used 2.75 yards for the border, backing, binding and hanging sleeve. All of the fabrics in the top had been previously counted.

The Star Pulse quilt took 3 yards of fabric for the quilt top and the back. I'm counting the backing fabric as used even though the quilt is not finished because the layers are already spray basted together, just waiting to be quilted. Here's the fabric I used for the back.

The other usage for the week was .75 yards for two Rainbow Scrap Challenge projects, the Hen & Chicks sampler and the Birthday Blocks by Edyta Sitar at Laundry Basket Quilts. You can see my blocks in yesterday's post.

Altogether, my usage for the week comes to 6.5 yards. No new fabric was added to the stash this week.

2024 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                     6.50 yards

Used year to date:                 45.0 yards

Added last week:                     0.0 yards

Added year to date:               32.0 yards

Net used in 2024:              13.0 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 quilting time. I pieced the two sets of sampler blocks this week, plus prepped the Star Pulse quilt for quilting. Unfortunately, progress on that came to a screeching halt when the tension assembly on my machine fell to pieces. I'm waiting, not so patiently, for a new part to arrive.

15 Minute Challenge for 2024: 

6/23 - 6/29               7 of 7 days

2024 Total          178 of 181 days

Success rate                 98.3 %   

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces. Thanks so much to Donna and Kate for continuing to host these link-ups.

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Scrappy Blue Sampler Blocks

I have nearly caught up with all of the blue blocks for my various Rainbow Scrap Challenge projects, making two different sets of sampler blocks this week. Up first are the blocks for the RSC 2024 Hen and Chicks sampler. The blocks will finish at 3" and 6", and I am making mine from batiks.

My other set of RSC blocks for the week were the latest of the Birthday Blocks by Edyta Sitar at Laundry Basket Quilts. For these I am alternating using a white or black background on each block. These blocks will finish at 6".

Since they were all sitting on the cutting table at the same time, I got some photos of both sets of blocks together.

The blue blocks for one of my other RSC projects, the Terry blocks, are not done yet, but there is still a chance that I can finish them before the month is over. I'm looking forward to finding out what our new color is for July (my guess is orange.)

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

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Star Pulse QAL

Ever since last November when Yvonne at Quilting Jetgirl announced her plans to host a quilt-along for her new Star Pulse pattern, I was intrigued by the design and trying to figure out a color palette that I wanted to use. Yvonne shared plenty of color options for inspiration, but I was hoping to work from my stash, and nothing really spoke to me for this project...until a couple of weeks ago.

Star Pulse quilt pattern, Quilting Jetgirl

The quilt-along started in December, and I followed along with Yvonne's instructions each month, still dreaming about making this quilt. Then inspiration hit when I read about a challenge hosted by the Great Wisconsin Quilt Show. This year's challenge theme is "Black & White Plus One," and the rules are to make a quilt that measures 30" wide by 40" high using only fabrics in black, white, and one additional color. Now that was a color scheme I could make work! I made several passes through my fabric stash, finally settling on this grouping of black and white prints (although I ended up changing the darkest fabric.) My "plus one" fabric is a nearly solid red batik.

The next challenge was adapting the Star Pulse pattern to fit the size requirements. Yvonne's pattern makes a 60" wide quilt that finishes at either 60" or 72" long. Making my units half that size worked perfectly for a 30" wide quilt, and I just had to adjust a little at the top and bottom to get the right length. Once I'd figured out my fabric choices, I was able to piece my mini version of Star Pulse in a weekend. Here's my finished top, followed by a closer look at some of the piecing.

Star Pulse quilt top, 30" x 40"

I had hoped to get my Star Pulse quilt finished by the end of the month and submit it for the quilt show challenge. Unfortunately, the tension assembly on the machine I use for quilting totally came apart and that machine is unusable until I receive the new part. For now I will have to settle for joining the Star Pulse final link-up at Quilting Jetgirl. Thanks so much to Yvonne for her wonderful pattern and a fun quilt-along.

Linking up with:

Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation

Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts

Brag About Your Beauties at From Bolt to Beauty

Star Pulse QAL Final Linkup at Quilting Jetgirl

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA 

Orange Peel Rainbow is Finished!

The Orange Peel Rainbow quilt has been finished for almost a month, but I finally managed to get some photos of it today. For some reason, taking photos has not been a high priority on the to-do list lately.

Orange Peel Rainbow, 39.5" x 51.5"

The applique blocks for this quilt were stitched as part of the Rainbow Scrap Challenge all through 2019 and up to the summer of 2020. I used to do a lot of hand applique stitching on my morning train ride to work, but of course that ended during Covid. I continued making blocks at home until I had enough for my chosen layout, then got them all joined together in August, 2020. Then the quilt top waited patiently in the to-be-quilted closet until this spring.

Orange Peel Rainbow quilt top without border

Earlier this year, I decided to finish this quilt and enter it in a local quilt show. The first step was adding the scrappy black/dark grey border.

My quilting was very simple, stitch-in-the-ditch between the blocks and around all the appliqued orange peels, all done in black thread. It doesn't show well on either the front or the back of the quilt.

I had a great backing fabric with bright colors on black that was perfect for this quilt. 

I haven't had a quilt finish since January (unless you count the little Fidget quilt I made in May,) so it feels really good to get this one done! I love the way the gradation of rainbow colors worked out and look forward to finding a spot to hang it in our home. It was great fun to see it hanging in the Georgia Celebrates Quilts show too. It didn't win a ribbon, but the judges had nice comments about the design and workmanship.

Linking up with:

Midweek Makers at Quilt Fabrication

Wednesday Wait Loss at Inquiring Quilter

Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation

Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts

TGIFF (Thank Goodness It's Finished Friday)

Brag About Your Beauties at From Bolt to Beauty

Rainbow Scrap Challenge at So Scrappy

June Favorite Finish at Quilting Jetgirl

Oh Scrap! at Quilting is more fun than Housework

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA