Progress on September Projects Continues.....

Scrap Happy Progress

The quilt along at American Patchwork and Quilting continues....

I've been making more of the "A" Blocks and as I do I also put them together to make the "B" blocks.

So far I do find it easy to make the "A" blocks and then combine four of them together to make the "B" blocks so will probably just continue that way as it is patterned.  As I noted in a previous post, there was a suggestion in the QAL Facebook group to just make the "B" blocks as one big block but it seems like a "six on the one hand, half dozen on the other" kind of process.  Many more to go before this is all done!

Holiday Quilts Progress

Temecula Quilt Co 12 Days of Christmas

This week, I worked on picking fabrics for the sashing and borders for each holiday mini quilt color scheme.

Boy, that was a bigger challenge than I thought it would be!  I changed up the sashing and borders on the Red & Green version (on the left) a few times and even changed the fabric in one of the blocks (Day 2 block).  I decided I liked the fabric I had used in it for the side borders but it was jarring if it also appeared in the center of the little quilt.  I found the prefect sashing fabric in a small stash of Christmas fabrics I have but had to search around to find it.  Guess it's been that long since I've made a Christmas quilt in the traditional color scheme.  At this point, I think the picks shown will be the final ones.

The same was true for the Red & White version (on the right).  I'm thrilled that using the "holiday words" print for the top and bottom borders works on this one too!  While I liked the micro polka dot sashing fabric I had picked, it read a little light so I thought the center still needed "something".  Initially, I thought about applying buttons or embellishments as sashing cornerstones after assembling it.  However, some fussy cutting of one of the red prints in my stash provided just the touch I needed and would still allow a button or other embellishment to be applied on top of them later if desired.  So that layout is also final and now awaiting assembly.

The Blue & White version still needs some decision work.  That's okay since this isn't the color scheme I'll be using this year so I have plenty of time to make those choices!   

Painless Borders Christmas Ribbons (aka Trees and Stars) 

I'm almost done making all the tree blocks for this project.  These were sewn leader/ender along with the APQ scrap blocks.  I have three more to make which I should be able to finish up by Friday.   

Once I have the Temecula layouts completed, I can clear the design wall and lay out the tree blocks the way they will be placed in the quilt.  Then I can start working on the border blocks next week.  As noted previously, the star blocks will be the last things I choose fabrics for and construct.

Prepping for the Garden Art Show 

Last year my community garden held an art show and asked members of the garden to participate by showcasing their hobbies or crafts. 

The garden's President contacted me at the start of this month to say that they wanted to do it again on the last Sunday and asked if I would participate again.  At first, I wasn't sure I wanted to as I am trying to stay on top of the many projects I have going.  Then I briefly considered that this might be a perfect opportunity to finally get to do something I've long wanted to arrange:  finish up my QOV quilts for donation and set up a station where people could die cut pieces and sew up blocks for an additional quilt.  

However, just as quickly I came to my senses:  the logistics of organizing that was too much to do in the space of a few weeks with everything else I have going on!  So in the end, I decided to just do a simple display on the theme "Scraps or Scrappy?"  I've gathered the quilts I want to use: 

Fortunately, this is the way I generally quilt so I already have more than enough examples of that!  What I wish I did have is a quilt made with limited fabrics, repeatedly used in the blocks in the same way throughout the quilt.  I would display it to contrast how many fabrics are used in the scrappy ones.  I do have one like that planned and "fabric funded".  I guess I need to get it in the project rotation at some point in case I need to demonstrate this concept again. 

Over the next few days I plan to make up signs to explain the difference between a "scrappy quilt" and a quilt made from actual scraps.  I also need to pull out my quilt stand and make sure I have everything for setting up the display.  We've already pulled our canopy out of storage so that's at the ready.  

Whew!  It's really been a busy week!