Stash Report Sunday 11/8/15

My stash totals didn't change much either way this week, but at least I used a little more than I added. I made 30 bowtie blocks and the last 10 circle applique blocks, both projects for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. I also made a pillowcase to go with a recent Quilt of Valor completion (which you can see HERE.)

As for additions, I bought a few more black-on-white prints to replenish my collection of them. I am especially excited by the multi-print piece that is shown across the bottom of the photo. Love the great variety of patterns!

The other recent addition to my "stash" is not fabric, but a wonderful new book to add to my already full bookshelves. I have been trying to stop buying more quilting books, but couldn't resist this beauty. It is the long-awaited book chronicling the "Infinite Variety" display that was held in New York in 2011. 

The book starts off with a series of very interesting essays. The first one is by Joanna Rose, the owner of the 653! quilts that were shown. The other essays are written by several of the people who put the show together. I loved learning more about how this incredible show was conceived and mounted.

Of course, the real stars of the book are the photographs. There are several pages with shots of the show, sharing the very creative way the designers displayed the quilts. 

There are individual photos of all the quilts (did I mention that there are 653 of them?) Each quilt includes a brief listing that identifies the pattern name and finished size of the quilt. In some cases they also list location or year that the quilt was made. The quilts are grouped into chapters by style of quilt: log cabin, stars, applique, etc.

I am thrilled to own this gorgeous book and look forward to many happy hours spent studying the pages for inspiration. My quilting bucket list just keeps getting longer!

TOTALS: 

Used this week:                       2.0 yards     

Used year to date:             148.75 yards

Stashed this week:               1.375 yards

Stashed year to date:        119.75 yards 

Net year to date:               29 yards used

Check out more stash reports at Patchwork Times.  

Julie in GA

Great Greens

Despite a long, tiring week at work, I have been making some progress on my projects for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. Our colors for November are light and bright greens. I have finished 30 bowtie blocks and eight more appliqued circles.

It is very exciting to be nearing completion of all my circle blocks, but I am also sad at the thought that I have only two more circles left to applique. I will be rather lost without this delightful project to work on during my train commute. I have started exploring some options for a new hand-stitching project for next year's rainbow challenge.

For anyone else considering making their own circle blocks, I just discovered that Audrey at Quilty Folk is hosting Quilty 365 where she will be making an appliqued circle block every day for a year. Wow, that's a lot of circles! It will be fun to follow her progress.

Quilty 365

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. 

Julie in GA

Quilts of Valor

I had hoped to get some lovely outdoor photos of my most recent Quilt of Valor completion, the Wonky Stars quilt top and back. Unfortunately, the weather has not been cooperating lately,  so I will have to settle for my usual through-the-doorway shots on the design wall.

This quilt was started as part of Alycia's QOV 2015 Block Drive. Alycia is constantly sharing beautiful photos of Quilts of Valor, plus hosting block drives and mystery quilts to benefit Quilts of Valor. Her energy and enthusiasm are such an inspiration! Be sure to check out her blog if you don't know her already.

Wonky Stars top
60" x 78"

My sister Karen and I made all the Wonky Star blocks for this quilt, then I joined them together and added the border of 3.5" squares. I didn't have enough of the blue circle print for the whole back, so I used the two blocks left over from the front, plus made two more larger Wonky Stars (15" finished). Those, plus a couple strips of blue/white crosshatch print, brought the back up to size.

Wonky Stars back
69" x 87"

Earlier today I shipped off a package containing the Wonky Stars quilt top and back to Alycia. I also included two other Quilts of Valor, both inspired by Alycia. The next one is called "Starry Night for Josh," and it was a mystery quilt-along that Alycia designed and hosted earlier this year.

Alycia's Starry Night
63" x 81"

Alycia's Starry Night--back

The other quilt that is on it's way to Alycia is from the Big Blowout Block Drive she hosted in 2013. I finished the top and back for this quilt early this year, and they have been hanging out in my sewing room ever since. It's time they get finished into an actual quilt and go to a deserving soldier/veteran.

1/4 Log Cabins

Back for 1/4 Log Cabins

I am linking up with Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation and with  "Can I Get a Whoop Whoop" on Friday at Confessions of a Fabric Addict.

Julie in GA

Stash Report Sunday 11/1/15

I finished making a quilt back for the Wonky Stars quilt top that my sister and I made together. We followed the instructions for Alycia's block drive, which you can find HERE. I hope to get a photo of the back tomorrow before I pack it up and send the top and the back to Alycia. Here is the main fabric I used for the back.

This is the kind of print I find very hard to use anywhere other than a quilt back. The largest circles measure almost 7" across. I was so sad to have used it all up on this quilt back that I decided to get some more from Connecting Threads next time it was on sale. When I checked their website on Friday, I discovered that it was already on clearance, and I just managed to get the last of it. Of course, I couldn't resist ordering all sorts of other fabrics that were also on sale. My stash report is going to take a big hit when that order arrives. I'd better keep sewing until then!

TOTALS: 

Used this week:                       5.0 yards     

Used year to date:             146.75 yards

Stashed this week:                      0 yards

Stashed year to date:      118.375 yards 

Net year to date:            28.375 yards used

Check out more stash reports at Patchwork Times.  

Julie in GA

Getting Into Green

October certainly flew by this year, and the remaining months are sure to be even busier. It felt good to get my Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks in brown done a little early, but it left me floundering for something to work on at the end of the month. 

I never did work on a brown UFO this month, so last week I pulled out a project from a class I took 5 years ago. These Shooting Stars blocks finish at 14" before the triangles around the outside are added. I have the pieces cut and partially stitched for two more blocks, but haven't decided what I want to use them for. I love the block pattern, but don't want to keep making more until I decide where they are headed. When I finish those two additional blocks, they will probably all end up right back in the same box as before

Because I was fairly certain that our RSC color for November was going to be light/bright green, I went ahead and started stitching my lighter green circle appliques. These will be the last blocks to be made for this quilt, and I am going to miss having my circles to sew on the train--time to find another little handwork project for next year. 

I have also started cutting away the background behind the circles. Thanks to everyone last week for your input on whether or not to trim. I decided to go ahead and trim all the blocks so they are consistent. Because I plan this quilt to be a wallhanging, I am not so worried about the stability with the background cut away. Boy, do I wish I had been trimming them as I made the blocks! That job gets tedious very quickly, and I have 120 or more blocks still to go. Then they all need to be squared off to 4-1/2" before I can start joining them together. Can't wait to get this quilt assembled!

I needed to take all the circle blocks off my design wall to put up another project, and I wanted to make it as easy as possible to get them all back in the same arrangement. I don't remember where I saw this idea, probably on someone's blog. I took each row down and stacked the blocks in order on a paper plate. The plates are labelled with the row number and also indicate which blocks are missing (those are the blocks still needing to be stitched.) I hope this helps when I am ready to put all the blocks back up on the wall.

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. 

Julie in GA

Shooting Stars

As part of the Rainbow Scrap Challenge, I have been working on two different projects all year long. I have also tried to make progress on a UFO each month based on the color assignment for the RSC, which is brown for this month. I realize that October is nearing the end (where did the month go?!), but today I finally pulled out one of my few projects that include brown, my Shooting Stars blocks.

These blocks were made in a class that I took 5 years ago. I am amazed that it has been that long! As happens with so many of my UFOs, they were set aside because I didn't have a clear idea of where I was going with them. The blocks are rather large, measuring 14" before the outside triangles are added on. I like the block pattern a lot, but I already have a pink and brown quilt and don't really want another bed quilt in those colors. 

I have a whole stack of pink and brown fabrics that I collected over the years. One of the options I am considering is to make more of the blocks, but in a scaled down version that could become a wallhanging. I want to keep this block pattern in mind for a possible future Quilt of Valor.

 I will be sharing with the following linky parties.:

Design Wall Monday at Patchwork Times

Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt
WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced

Julie in GA

Stash Report Sunday 10/25/15

Before I sat down to write my stash report, I was happily thinking that I could count some fabric as used but had no additions for the week. WRONG! I forgot that I stopped at Joann's last Sunday afternoon to look for some fabric to back a baby quilt. I found this wild tie-dye flannel that was on super clearance so I bought what they had left, 4.5 yards. That will be enough to back at least 2, probably 3 baby quilts.

My usage was less than the incoming, but I am very happy to report a finished quilt top! My sister and I have been making Wonky Stars for Alycia's QOV block drive. I joined all of the Wonky Stars blocks together, then added a border of 3.5" squares around the stars. You can see about 90% of the quilt here--altogether it has 6 stars across and 8 down, plus the border of scrappy squares all the way around. If only I didn't have to photograph my design wall through a doorway!

TOTALS: 

Used this week:                  1.375 yards     

Used year to date:            141.75 yards

Stashed this week:                4.50 yards

Stashed year to date:      118.375 yards 

Net year to date:            23.375 yards used

Check out more stash reports at Patchwork Times.  

Julie in GA

Scrappy Golden Circles

This week has been a busy one, with less time than usual for quilting. Fortunately, I still had time to hand stitch my appliqued circles for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. I finished up seven more blocks in shades of yellow and gold. I believe that is the end of the warm colors for me. All that's left are some light and bright green circles, and I think that will be our color assignment for November.

On some of my blocks, especially the paler colors like yellow, you can see a shadow through the circle from the seam in the light and dark fabrics of the background. I have started trimming out the background behind those circles. 

Here's a question for you fans of hand applique out there--would you cut away the background on ALL of your blocks so they were consistent, or only on the blocks where the seam shows through? I wish I had pressed that background seam open instead of toward the dark; it would not make such a ridge in the circle.

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. 

Julie in GA

Wall of Wonky Stars

I began making Wonky Star blocks for Alycia's block drive back in September. I posted photos of the blocks on the blog, which inspired my sister to start making some blocks too. We decided to join forces and try to get enough blocks made for a Quilt of Valor. Here is my design wall covered with our collection of wonky stars.

Somehow I ended up with two extra blocks, but they will go to Alycia along with the quilt top that these will become. I hope to start sewing them together this week. After that, they will only need a border or two, then away they go to Quilts of Valor for quilting. Wonky is not my usual style, but I sure had a good time making these stars.

I will be sharing with the following linky parties.:

Design Wall Monday at Patchwork Times

Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt
WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced

Julie in GA

Stash Report Sunday 10/18/15

The fabric enabler has struck again! Yesterday my sweet husband suggested that I ride along with him when he went to his morning rehearsal. Not too far from the rehearsal were three quilt shops, and I visited every one of them and got fabric at every single shop. Best of all, he was buying! It was an early birthday present--he knows what makes me happy.

I was looking to replenish my stock of black and white prints, and got 12 different fabrics, all 1/4 yard pieces. I also got two RWB pieces that will be great for Quilts of Valor. I had used the light one with the music notes before, and was very happy to find more of it yesterday. The stripe may become sashing and/or border on a QOV that my sister and I are making together.

As for usage, I finished up 30 brown bowtie blocks for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge and 6 Wonky Stars for Alycia's QOV block drive. I also made 4 Twinkle Star blocks for the Block Lotto, but they all came out a little small. Maybe I will keep them for myself or see if I can fix them to end up a smidge bigger. They are too pretty to not be used somewhere.

Block Lotto Twinkle Stars

TOTALS: 

Used this week:                  1.875 yards     

Used year to date:            140.375 yards

Stashed this week:                7.50 yards

Stashed year to date:      113.875 yards 

Net year to date:            26.5 yards used

Check out more stash reports at Patchwork Times.  

Julie in GA