Design Wall Monday 6/29/15

My post today will be brief because I am having computer problems and have to borrow my husband's computer to post this, plus I am using photos from my phone.

I took a fantastic class on Saturday with Mickey Depre. The pattern was the Castle Wall block, and we hand pieced it. Mickey is a wonderful teacher, and it was so nice and relaxing to all be sitting around sewing by hand instead of trying to socialize over the noise of sewing machines. I finished my block yesterday.

Castle Wall
class with Mickey Depre

Alycia has been hosting a quilt-along that she is calling "Starry Night for Josh." She posted the final layout of the blocks today, and it looks fabulous! I haven't made the last set of blocks yet, but this is what I have so far. Her layout looks so much better than this!

Starry Night for Josh
alyciaquilts.blogspot.com

I am linking up to Design Wall Monday at Patchwork Times, where you can see all sorts of amazing quilting inspiration! I am also linking up to Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt.

Julie in GA

Stash Report Sunday 6/28/15

For the first time in a few weeks, there was no new fabric added to my stash this week! I didn't use enough to get back to even, but I am chipping away at getting there.

As far as outgoing fabric, I used 1/2 yard finishing up my turquoise bowties for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. I also used 1/8 yard for a Castle Wall block in a great class with Mickey Depre yesterday plus 2.75 yards for the stars and nine-patch blocks in Alycia's Starry Night for Josh QAL. I will show both of those projects on my design wall tomorrow.

TOTALS:

Used this week:                   3.375 yards     
Used year to date:             85.375 yards

Stashed this week:                   0  yards

Stashed year to date:         91.25 yards 

Net year to date:              5.875 yards stashed

Check out more stash reports at Patchwork Times.  

Julie in GA

The Turquoise Collection

We are nearing the end of our month of light blue and greenish blue for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. My focus has been on using my turquoise scraps. I have completed 10 appliqued circle blocks and 48 bowtie blocks. I still have a couple more of the circles prepped for stitching. To save time I decided to put both kinds of blocks up on the design wall together for a photo, and they look pretty good to me.

I haven't made much progress on a turquoise UFO this month. I did pull out a box that had already-cut pieces and extra blocks from the Storm at Sea quilt that I finished a couple years ago (you can see it HERE.) I have no idea what the leftovers might become, but maybe I will have something to show next week.

Check out all of the terrific scrappy rainbow projects at the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. On Sunday I will also be linking up to Oh Scrap! at Quilting is more fun than Housework.

Julie in GA

WIP Wednesday--Improv Scrappy blocks

When visiting family in Wisconsin a few weeks ago, my sister and I started making scrappy blocks using some of the huge collection of scraps at our mother's house that had accumulated over the past several decades. You can read more about that visit and see plenty of photos of our project HERE.

We are hoping to have enough blocks made when I return there in a couple of weeks so that we can start putting them together into throw quilts. I finally started making some additional blocks this week. It's not as much fun making them by myself as it was working as a team, but I hope to have a dozen blocks done when I go back.

These blocks feature some old favorite friends--Holly Hobbie, Raggedy Andy, and the Cheshire Cat. None of us remembers what the piece of Alice in Wonderland fabric was used for, but it is adorable!

I am linking up to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced. Check it out for tons of amazing ideas and inspiration. 

Julie in GA

Design Wall Monday 6/22/15

Yesterday I finished making turquoise bowtie blocks, one of my projects for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge this year. I ended up with 48 blocks this month and decided to combine them on the design wall with the blue blocks from earlier in the year. This represents two colors out of six that are done so far this year, 96 blocks out of close to 300 that have been made. Probably another 200 - 250 blocks more by the end of the year. They could turn into several bowtie quilts eventually.

I saw a bowtie quilt that used the same layout of blocks at a quilt show recently, and I really liked the look of that quilt. Of course, it helps that their blocks finished at 2". If my math is correct, this quilt has 768 blocks in it. My blocks finish at 4", and a quilt with the same number of blocks would measure 96" x 128". Far too big for any of our beds! I still have several months to go before I have to decide how to join all my blocks together.

"Little Bowties" by Linda Simons and Shawn Hooten
displayed at ECQG show 6/2015

I am linking up to Design Wall Monday at Patchwork Times, where you can see all sorts of amazing quilting inspiration! I am also linking up to Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt.

Julie in GA

Stash Report Sunday 6/21/15

I knew my stash busting efforts wouldn't get far this week since we were out of town for most of the week. I did get the borders finished on my Rainbow LeMoyne Stars last Sunday and Monday, using 1 yard of fabric. You can see it in yesterday's post.

We spent most of the week visiting the Blue Ridge Parkway. It was one of the most beautiful and peaceful places I have ever seen. The lack of traffic was such a treat, and the views were absolutely amazing!

We didn't see any fabric stores or quilt shops on the way up to the parkway, but our drive home took us directly past Mary Jo's in Gastonia, NC. I thought it would be a good idea to just drive right by, but it didn't take much arm-twisting to persuade me to stop after all. I bought three fabrics that will end up becoming pajama pants and/or shorts. They aren't intended for quilts, but I will count them as part of my stash since they will be added to the overflowing collection of fabrics in my sewing room.

TOTALS:

Used this week:                      1.0 yards     
Used year to date:                82.0 yards

Stashed this week:               10.5 yards

Stashed year to date:         91.25 yards 

Net year to date:              9.25 yards stashed

Check out more stash reports at Patchwork Times.  

Julie in GA

Scrappy Turquoise Saturday

Quilting took a back seat to travelling this week, leaving me with little to show for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge today. I did add a few more turquoise circle blocks to my previous group. I agree with everyone who left comments last week saying that the blocks look better on point like this.

"True Colors" pattern by Nancy Mahoney
from her book Simple Circles and Quick Curves

Before we left town, I finished the borders on my quilt of 12" LeMoyne Star blocks. These blocks were made for the RSC in 2014. The first version had a wider border of the bright striped fabric, but I ended up cutting it down so it would be less prominent. Those scrappy stars need to be the focus of this quilt. It was a small change, but I am much happier with it this way.

Rainbow LeMoyne Stars
53.5" x 68"

Check out all of the terrific scrappy rainbow projects at the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. On Sunday I will also be linking up to Oh Scrap! at Quilting is more fun than Housework.

Julie in GA

Design Wall Monday 6/15/15--Border Indecision

On my design wall this week is my scrappy rainbow of 12" LeMoyne Star blocks. These were one of my projects for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge 2014. The blocks have been sewn together since early January, but I was undecided about the border. I tried making a pieced border for the quilt, but didn't like the way it looked. All my other attempts seemed too dark, until I got a new (to me) white on black fabric. I decided to use it along with a narrow border of a colorful stripe.

My indecision right now is whether the colorful stripe should be narrower. It's hard to see in the photo, but I have pinned the right side border to cover up part of that stripe and see if that improves things. Maybe some close-ups would help show what I mean.

In the top left corner, the colorful borders finish at 1". On the right side of the final photo, that border is about 1/2". I will continue to ponder changing this and appreciate any opinions or suggestions.

I am linking up to Design Wall Monday at Patchwork Times, where you can see all sorts of amazing quilting inspiration! I am also linking up to Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt.

Julie in GA

Stash Report Sunday 6/14/15

A week ago, my stash usage was ahead of additions for the year by over 20 yards. Today it is ahead by a mere 1/4 yard. My STASH took a CRASH!

Oh, but it was such fun! Is there anything better than buying new fabric? I don't think so. And especially when it is on sale--that's the best! (Except maybe free fabric!)

Unfortunately, most of my purchases came about because of the unhappy news that one of my favorite quilt shops may be closing. One of the co-owners is moving away. It is possible that someone else may buy the business, but the current shop is still going ahead with their liquidation sale, and I took full advantage of it. I got a few pieces of yardage and a ton of fat quarters.

After a visit to the East Cobb Quilters' Guild show on Saturday, we continued north to the lovely town of Dahlonega, where my sweet husband (the enabler) insisted on visiting both of the quilt shops in town. Here's what came home with me from there.

As you can see, the main themes were light neutrals, black and white, red and white, some music prints, and a few assorted other pieces.

The only fabric used this week was 1/2 yard for some turquoise bowtie blocks. It was just enough to keep my total in the black.

TOTALS:

Used this week:                        .5 yards     
Used year to date:                81.0 yards

Stashed this week:            21.125 yards

Stashed year to date:          80.75 yards 

Net year to date:              .25 yards used--still in the black!

Check out more stash reports at Patchwork Times.  

Julie in GA

Rainbows and Scraps

There isn't much of my own quilting to show for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge this week, although I did finish up a few appliqued circles. I'm not sure if I like them better on point or set straight.

I had hoped to get a batch of bowtie blocks done, but they are not ready to show yet. I was out of town for most of the past week and have fallen behind on my rainbow projects, but it was so worth it to spend time with family!

Since there is so little of my own to show, I will share some quilt show photos. Yesterday I went to the "Georgia Celebrates Quilts" show presented by the East Cobb Quilters' Guild.  This show happens every other year, and there are always many wonderful quilts to see. Since our RSC color for June is light blue, I wanted to share this lovely sampler in blues.

"Blue Soiree" by Daryl Wilson Miller

This bowtie quilt really caught my attention. The rainbow bowtie blocks I have been making all year will finish at 4". The bowties in this quilt measure only 2"! Love this setting for the blocks.

"Little Bowties" by Linda Simons and Shawn Hooten"
Honorable Mention, Two Person Pieced
Judge's Recognition by Carol Butzke

Here are some of my favorite rainbow quilts from the quilt show:

"Celestial Orbs" by Sylvia Schaefer
1st Place, Modern

"Lone(ly) Rainbow" by Pam Cobb
Honorable Mention, Modern

"Rainbow Explosion" by Jan Cunningham and Bella Bamert
Honorable Mention, Two Person Modern

"A Colorful Life" by Ellen Plattner and Andi Settlemoir Barney

I hope I credited the correct names and prizes on all of the quilt show photos. Sometimes I forget to get an extra photo of the tag with that info. These are all a wonderful source of inspiration, and I congratulate every one of them!

Check out all of the terrific scrappy rainbow projects at the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. 

Julie in GA