Ugly Blocks!

 After finishing a project, I cut the scraps into usable pieces, strips if it's long enough, otherwise into squares. I use these in on going projects or scrappy quilts.

I've slowly been diminishing the squares in the 2.5" box. What was left in there were the 'ugly' fabrics, to me anyway. A lot of the background fabrics had a yellow cast to them which I didn't appreciate and there were a lot of dark beige squares also. There were a lot of green squares but also browns, blues and a few reds. I did let some of the 'pretty' squares participate because they were also in the box.

I had placed them into a bag to take along to the April retreat to start sewing 4 patches but that didn't happen. Earlier this summer I put the bag beside my machine to run the squares through as leader/ender blocks. I guess I should clarify I really sew ender blocks. When I stop sewing, I stitch 2 squares together then turn off my machine. They sit there waiting for me to start sewing again.

Once the blocks were foursies, I sewed them into 16 square blocks. I have over one hundred 8.5" blocks pieced. For now they're on a shelf waiting to be trimmed then sewn into a quilt top. I don't know what I'm going to do with this quilt, I feel guilty giving it away as a charity quilt when it's made with mostly ugly fabrics! The trimming and finishing will happen in the winter. I'm glad to have those squares gone from the box.

Do you have ugly fabrics in your scraps? Do you sew them into charity quilts to be given away? And please don't tell me Bonnie Hunter says to cut them smaller so they're harder to see! I already have a box with plenty of 2" square and 1.5" squares to sew together. 

Linking to To Do Tuesday, Wednesday Wait Loss, Needle & Thread Thursday, Put Your Foot Down, Free Motion Mavericks, TGIFF!, Finished or Not Friday, Off the Wall Friday, Beauty Pageant, Patchwork & Quilts

What's On The Clothesline?

I'm slowly getting things switched over from the winter routine into springtime. That includes washing the winter throw quilts and putting them into storage until next winter.

I took pictures of these quilts while they were on the clothesline. When I dry a quilt on the line, I always hang the quilt so the back side of the quilt gets the full sun. I don't care if the backside gets faded. I've turned the quilts around so you can see their faces.

This snowflake quilt is an Edyta Sitar design and was made with a fabric kit. The longarm quilting is by Sherryl Tobias, Nappanee, Ind.

Many years ago I made this small scrappy Christmas pinwheel quilt because I didn't have any Christmas quilts. The longarm quilting is by Vicki Hunsberger. She quilted poinsettias on the quilt with a variegated red and green thread.

I sewed leftovers for the back. I had some friends tell me they liked the back of the quilt better than the front. It's too much of a hodge-podge for me.

Several years ago, a member of the quilt guild brought each of the members a fat quarter of fabric. 

She challenged each of us to bring a fat quarter for each member that would coordinate with the fabric she brought. We were then supposed to make something with those fabrics. This is fall quilt. We use it as a light-weight comforter on our bed in the winter.

I used flannel on the back and hand quilted him. The quilting shows better on the back than the front.

Since these quilts are going to be put away, I took my spring throw and hung her on the line to freshen up before taking her place on the back of the couch.

I made her in the early 2000's. The outside border was a very pretty medium-dark blue with a flower design. I had purchased the fabric at Wal-Mart. Even though she was never in direct sunlight, the fabric still faded. I still use her though. 

I had purchased these blocks to be embroidered at a Ben Franklin store in Bowling Green, Ohio when son 2 and his wife were attending Bowling Green University. 

The backing on the quilt is muslin and the hand quilting shows nicely.

While I was taking pictures of the quilts, these 3 Guernsey heifers ambled over and wanted their picture taken too.

That's all for today!

Linking to - Fiber Tuesday, Sew Fresh Quilts

Sister's Choice - Gretchen's Headache

Last week I told you about starting a Sisters Choice quilt since I already had the 9-patch blocks completed, and how I decided to cut the mutant flying geese differently than Bonnie Hunter said. I thought I would be saving some time by not messing with flippy corners and the extra HST's.

And remember, I didn't cut the rectangles the right length so I was needing to trim the 9-patches. I planned to trim the 9-patches after the mutants were sewn; which I am still waiting to do.

As I was sewing the star point rectangles or mutant flying geese (I don't really care what they're called) I realized that some of the rectangle length were cut slightly shorter than the other rectangles. UGH! 

I finished sewing the HST's to the rectangles, pressed them, then started trimming them all to the same size. The width needed to be downsized to 2" (1-1/2" finished) and the length 5-1/2" (5" finished). I trimmed maybe 20 then decided I didn't want to spend time doing this right now. I want to sew! I did trim 1 9-patch block to the correct size and sewed the mutants onto her.

Then I wrote up notes, so I could know what I had been doing; then gently, neatly and carefully placed all the blocks and pieces into a ziplock bag and put the bag into a tub. Sister's Choice - Gretchen's Headache is now an official  UFQ (unfinished quilt). I'll work on this project next winter when I have more time and patience.

I pulled out my embroidered snowman, trimmed him up and added a border.

Yes, this is actually what I needed, a finish! He may be only   13 1/2" by 15" but it is a flimsy and I have a sense of accomplishment.

These strips are 3" wide but that is more width than I will need. I'll trim after he is quilted. Mitering a printed stripe fabric is more challenging than a woven stripe. That is why the bottom left corner looks goofy.

I'll get him marked, then he'll be all ready for quilting.

Linking to - Esther's Wednesday WOW!, Sew Fresh Quilts, Jo's Junction, Quilting is More Fun Than Housework, My Quilt Infatuation, Crazy Mom Quilts, Confessions of a Fabric Addict, A Quilting Reader's Garden, Show Off Saturday

Sisters Choice

One summer, several years ago, I made 9-patch blocks, all different sizes.

I used some of the 3" finished blocks in the Cherry Blossoms Quilt. There are a lot of 3" blocks left. 

I made many 4-1/2" finished 9 patches. I haven't done anything with them yet but I did sketch out an idea . . . someday!

I also sewed at least 100 6" finished 9-patches. Earlier this summer I turned to the queen of scrappy quilts (Bonnie Hunter of course) and see what she had on her Quiltville! blog for 6" 9-patches. I chose her Sisters Choice quilt.

Bonnie tells you to make flippy corners for her Star Points. I didn't want to make flippy corners. I know Bonnie raves about them because she loves the extra HST's for a future project but I think they are just a nuisance. 

I had the bright idea to cut my rectangles with the edges angled and then sew the colored HST's on those edges. By doing this way I don't need those nuisance extra HST's.

I'm sure this would have worked fine if I had used the correct length for the rectangles, but I didn't. The star point were too short for the 9-patches. I know, I should have checked earlier, but I thought I had done the math!

Now I could do one of 2 things, 1 - Make new 9-patches to fit the star points. 2 - Cut more fabric to make the correct size star points. 

I chose to do #3 - none of the above. I just trimmed down the 9-patches to fit the star points.

These blocks will measure 9-1/4" finished instead of the 10" they're supposed to be.

Have I created a new design? Isn't that how new quilt designs are made, by making mistakes? I'm still going to call it Sisters Choice.

I've been sewing these mutant flying geese when I'm in the mood to sew and I don't have anything else to work on at the moment. I'm making progress. After all 724 of them are sewn, I'll trim the 9 patches. I don't know when I'll get these blocks finished but a little sewing time here and there adds up.

Cynthia, from Quilting is More Fun than Housework, has asked us to list our favorite blogs. There are many blogs I enjoy reading, but I am going to just list a few. They all are quilters but they all have different interests in quilting.

Jo's Country Junction and Karen from Quilts.....Etc. They post everyday! Jo sometimes has an evening post too. These two are the first blogs I check every morning over a cup of coffee. Kathy Quilts has a link party on Sundays and promotes slow handwork. 

I enjoy all the blogs I link to. In some of the links, quilters from other countries link up. I get to travel to Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Canada and many other countries. Stitchin Farm Girl, Glenda from Patchwork Dreams and Chris from Quilting at the Farm are just several from the very many blogs.

Linking to -  Quilt Story, Esther's Wednesday WOW!, Sew Fresh Quilts, Silly Mama Quilts, My Quilt Infatuation, Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Love Laugh Quilt, Em's Scrapbag, Crazy Mom Quilts, Show Off Saturday. 

There are also blogs I enjoy reading that don't post very often. These are the quilters who are so busy making WOW! quilts they don't have time to post. Hilde from Every Stitch, Carla-A Few of My Favorite Things, Carole-Wheels on the Warrandyte Bus, Susan-Thimble Stitch, Mereth from Artful Sister.

Click on the sidebars of blogs or linky parties and visit someone new!


There are many other greats blogs out there but I can't list them all. Enjoy your reading! Have a good week. Blessings, Gretchen

Quilt Finish

The last of the quilts for the grandchildren has been quilted, I really like how she has turned out. Her name is Scrappy Rainbow. The quilting was done on my home sewing machine with stitching in the ditch on the horizontal seams. Diagonal stitching completed the quilt and she finished at 60" x 75".

More of my mother's purple fabrics for the backing of the quilt and I used various fabrics for the binding.

This aren't the greatest photos, but how could I resist placing the quilt on the porch glider in the wonderful sunshine?

We have 7 grandchildren but I only made 6 quilts. The youngest is still sleeps in a crib and uses the quilt I made him before he was born. He doesn't need a new quilt, I made him a pillowcase so he won't feel left out.

In January I mentioned 2 UFQ's I wanted to finish. I have completed one of them. I had been undecided about the border I wanted for the Cherry Blossoms quilt. I had put her away until I decided on a border and this is what I came up with. Nothing fantastic but I feel it finishes the center better than just a 1" narrow border and a plain fabric border. The quilt measures 90" x 102" at this point. She will eventually be long-arm quilted but I don't know when.

The pattern is from Karen H's blog, Faeries & Fibres. It was a free pattern when I downloaded it but now there is a pattern charge. I made the quilt larger and added the pieced border.

Now it was time to get back to making some Nearly Insane blocks. I hadn't pieced any since December; it was fun to do paper-piecing again. I'm piecing a diagonal row at a time, starting at the top left corner. Row 2 has block 8 in it. This little 6" finished block has 150 pieces! I'm showing you a separate photo of her.

Several people have e-mailed me and told me about the Nearly Insane Quilts blog. She far more skilled and dexterous than I am. Those inside HST's are 1/2" finished! If I want my blocks to be accurate, then the blocks have to be paper-pieced, not regularly pieced.

The yellow sashing looks brighter than it actually is.

In the evenings I've been working on an old EPP crib quilt that has been in progress for several years. I only work on her when I don't have any applique prepped. 

The papers are 1" hexies. There are more rows coming.

The spring Jane Stickle quilt retreat starts on April 13th. I need to get prepping! 

Linking up to Kathy's Slow Stitching Sunday
Quilting is More Fun than Housework
Love Laugh Quilt
Esther's Wednesday WOW
My Quilt Infatuation
Crazy Mom Quilts
A Quilting Reader's Garden

Scrappy Quilts & Sweet Surrender

I've decided to make a quilt for each of my grandchildren and to make it challenging, I'm trying to just use fabrics from my stash.

Years ago I had cut a lot of five inch blocks. I got them out of the box to see what I could make with them. I'm not good with a random design, I have to have a plan. Trip Around the World was the pattern I chose. Scrappy Trips was stitched in the ditch horizontally and vertically. Then I stitched diagonally from side to side.

I tear pages out of magazines for ideas and the Width of Fabric quilt idea was from a picture in a magazine. How simple, I can do that! This quilt was quilted in the ditch horizontally first, then vertically with 1" straight stitching.

Fabric from my mother's stash was used for the backing.

Scrappy Trips measures 50" X 60" and the Width of Fabric quilt measures 42" X 68". These two quilts are for the two youngest granddaughters.

I've started piecing quilts for the grandsons. I'm using a Bonnie Hunter pattern, Scrappy Majestic Mountains. I pulled the box of mom's homespun fabrics for this project. So far the blocks are still in the process of being sewn, this definitely is NOT a fast pattern.

Applique in the evening is very relaxing. Three more Sweet Surrender triangle blocks and a half block have been completed.

I didn't take a picture, but several weeks ago I won a package of 1" Hexagons from A Quilting Reader's Garden. They came in the mail this week and were a very welcome package on a cloudy, dreary day. Thanks!

Linking up with Kathy's Slow Sunday Stitching, Quilting is More Fun than Housework, Love Laugh Quilt, Quilt Story, Esther's Wednesday Wow, Freshly Pieced, My Quilt Infatuation, A Quilting Reader's Garden and Crazy Mom Quilts.