Stop the Presses!!

... and don't believe anything I say

I know I said I was only going to use my stash to finish off the shoofly baby quilt.

But a local quilt shop is going out of business ... and I felt compelled to show my support one last time ... and everything in the store was 20% off ... and, well, I found the perfect border fabric.

BasicGrey - 25th and Pine for Moda

Don't you agree?

I bought enough to go on the back, if I'm so inclined. Or I might be able to eek out a third quilt from the Scrumptious scraps.

Linking with Angela at soscrappy for Scrap Happy Saturday.

Why Is It? Wednesday

Starting a new thread here with Why Is It? Wednesday

Why is it we use words in day-to-day conversation and, suddenly, one just sounds weird?

Take SHAMPOO, for example. Where did that word come from?  Wouldn't hair soap make more sense?

If I've aroused your interest, the answer can be found at Wikipedia ...

Please feel free to share your favorite weird words.

... and a WIP

And on to my Work In Process (WIP):

I got this far with the baby quilt made from leftovers from Scrumptious Stars.

At this point it is about 32" x 39".  Big enough to cover an infant or use in a car seat. But if I added borders, would it be more useful?

Here's what I'm considering (bear in mind I don't plan to purchase anything):

Funky squares

Jelly beans

Please advise.

Out of the Remnants ...

 ... A Baby Quilt

Or at least the beginnings of one.

As I said in an earlier post, I had a bunch of bonus half-square triangles leftover from this last project:

Scrumptious Stars

Not wanting to have any leftover/orphan parts, I thought about what I could do with HSTs. Shoofly seemed to be the easiest option. 

My original intention was to incorporate the HSTs into the border of Scrumptious Stars.  In the end, I nixed that idea, so they may go on the baby quilt. OR I might build a few more shoofly blocks. Hmmm... stay tuned!

I was able to squeeze 20 blocks out of the leftovers, but I had to bring in two other colorways of the background from a Layer Cake and Charm Pack.

Red background colorway

Pink background colorway

I think this will add a little interest, along with an odd block in the teal colorway.

Orphan block

The twenty shoofly blocks will be sashed with the same pink diagonal stripe I used as the flange in Scrumptious Stars.

I'm off to stitch some sashing. In the meantime, I'm linking up with Judy at Patchwork Times for Design Wall Monday.

One Monthly Goal - September

DONE!!

Even though I declared a very easy One Monthly Goal (OMG) it has taken me over three weeks to get this flimsy done.  I blame Quilter's ADD ...

Scrumptious Stars (a/k/a Star Gazing - design by Margot Languedoc

I have named it "Scrumptious Stars" because the Scrumptious (by Bonnie & Camille for Moda) background was the inspiration for my color selections. The pale teal star looks much better in real life.

I added a diagonal pink stripe (also Scrumptious) flange inside the border just for something different from the traditional inner border.

I love this star pattern; it looks so much more complicated than it really is.

I did sew-and-flip corners for most of the star points. It was just easier since every star is a different fabric -- less thought involved.  As a result, however, I have a lot of bonus half-square triangles, so you may see more of these fabrics show up in  a baby quilt sometime soon. ;-)

This will probably be my contribution to the Hillsboro Presbyterian Church youth auction next year so it will be going to my LAQ very soon to get into her queue.


Heidi at Red Letter Quilts is the host for One Monthly Goal (OMG). Be sure to check in over there to see if other quilters met their OMG.

Conveniently, this top includes rosy reds, the Rainbow Scrap Challenge color for September so I will be linking up with Angela at soscrappy to report my progress.

WIP Wednesday -- on Thursday

Out of the Depths

Sometimes I am amazed at where my mind wanders. I've been sticking to a plan, methodically working through UFOs, with a little bit of cleaning/organizing here and there lately.  This crept out in my latest cleaning binge. No, really, it pretty much JUMPED out and shouted LOOK AT ME!!!

Stars of Summer - by All Through the Night

I'm glad I did because, even though several elements had already been cut, there were some pretty nice fabrics in that project box that could/should go back on the shelf.

I don't know when I started planning this one; the pattern is dated 2012.  I think the pattern preceded the fabric, or maybe it's the other way around.  I was probably in one of my 4-patch posey phases.  Or maybe I was in my Jacobean phase ....

I had these lovely panels that looked like a cross between Jacobean tiles and kaleidoscopic posies. And they were the right size for the pattern.

Harvest Spice by Nancy Davis McMurtry

My original plan was to use this background.

Ick!

Kinda made me think of worms.  And it didn't really compliment the panels. So even though I had all the strips and squares cut, I put it back on the shelf and chose this marble dot, instead.

Using the pattern picture as inspiration, I chose black for the star points.

But after making a couple of sample blocks I realized that the black simply blended with the purple of the panels when I really wanted contrast in the star points. So I put all that cut fabric back on the shelf, as well, and chose a red, instead.

I'm not sure I will have enough of this red to do both the large stars and small stars so my plan is to cut and kit all the large stars first, then see if I need to bring in another--possibly different color--fabric for the small stars points.

This quilt was nowhere on my radar at the beginning of the week! Now it's migrated to a higher priority. It might be something I take to an upcoming retreat. Or it might go back in the stack. But this time it will be ready to pick up and stitch when I have time.

And the Winner Is ...

The Orphan Adoption event here at Life on the Hill

closed at Midnight Wednesday night.

The winners have been notified.

Recipient of the Jubilee blocks is Diana @ Red Delicious Life.

Jublilee - Design by Margot Languedoc

Recipient of the Bright Beginnings panel and pattern is Karen @ Tu-Na Quilts.

Bright Beginnings - Design by Sandy Brawner and Sara Tuttle

The response to my orphan offerings was fantastic. Unfortunately, I had a great number of "No-Reply" comments. I did everything I could think of to find contact information for those individuals but ultimately had to eliminate them from competition. That saddened me because many of them had really solid ideas of what they would do with my orphans.

Thanks to Cynthia at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework for organizing this event. She does this twice a year, so be watching for more orphan adoptions next Spring.

I Like Rose, But ...

Tragedy Averted

Last week, during my severe ADD episode, my attention was diverted to some 45-degree diamonds that I thought would work nicely in a minimalist setting.

I know, the photo is not the greatest, but I felt like the jewel tones could benefit from a dash of brighter color. So I looked in my solids drawer and came across some hand-dyed fat 8ths that I think I bought for my Hunter Star quilt (I'll have to go to the laptop to get a photo of that quilt).

While steam pressing the fat 8ths I noticed this on my NEW ironing board cover.

Hmm, did I spill some wine? Or did one of the fabrics bleed?  Time to do some scientific research!

Uh, yes, the fabric bled!  What bugs me is that I had washed all of these bits once.

Good thing I discovered this before putting those fabrics in the quilt. Tragedy averted, so far! But now I have to go look at Hunters Star and see if I actually used any it that one because it hasn't been washed.

Cross your fingers !!!

Linking up with Angela for Scrap Happy Saturday.

Please Adopt Me, Two!

UPDATE:  Auction is closed. Winner has been notified.

Cynthia Brunz over at Quilting is More Fun than Housework is hosting an Orphan Adoption event this weekend. She does this twice a year. Go check it out and then find someone's UFO to adopt!

Bright Beginings

My second orphan adoption is a 24" by WOF panel of bright florals.

Bright Beginnings by Quilt Country

Sara Tuttle & Sandy Brawner for Moda

I can't tell you how long I've had this panel, probably at least 6 years.  There are 10 different arrangements of the flowers.

They resemble Jacobean applique in bright colors. They're all different sizes and shapes, too.

So it would be nice to know how to use them, right? I have the answer!!

The included pattern, "Bright Beginnings" by Quilt Country (www.quiltcountry.com), is designed to be used with the panel by the same name. How cool is that!  All you have to do is frame the little panels, then add some log cabins and 2-1/2" squares from your own bright stash. The quilt as designed finishes at 74" x 88".

There is no charge for you to adopt my orphan and I have no preference how you use what you receive. I will pay the shipping. I am located in Tennessee/USA and will only ship within the US.

This adoption is open until midnight CDT on Wednesday, September 21, 2016.

Leave a comment below and tell me what you have in mind. I'll put your name in the hat. The winner will be selected totally at random. Just be sure that there is a way I can get in touch with you to get your snail mail address (in other words, if you're a "no reply" commenter, include a current email address).

And don't forget to check out the other orphans up for adoption.

I would love to see your finished project and it would be nice if you come back here from time to time to see what I'm up to.

Please Adopt Me!

Jubilee

UPDATE:  Auction is closed. Winner has been notified.

Cynthia Brunz over at Quilting is More Fun than Housework is hosting an Orphan Adoption event this weekend. She does this twice a year. Go check it out and then find someone's UFO to adopt!

My first project up for adoption, begun in December 2013, is made from a Moda Layer Cake (Aspen Frost) and white BasicGrey Grunge by Moda.  I finished the blocks in March of this year.  All that is left for you to do is add sashing and borders of your choice! Finished size is 62" by 74".

If you adopt my UFO, you will receive 20 blocks that will finish at 10-1/2" -- 7 assorted red, 7 assorted aqua ...

and 6 assorted evergreen.

I will include two unused pieces ...

... along with the pattern ...

Jubilee by Margot Languedoc for The Pattern Basket

and the selvage from the Grunge I was using in case you want to follow the patterns and use it for sashing and borders.

There is no charge for you to adopt my orphan and I have no preference how you use what you receive. I will pay the shipping. I am located in Tennessee/USA and will only ship within the US.

This adoption is open until midnight CDT on Wednesday, September 21, 2016.

Leave a comment below and tell me what you have in mind. I'll put your name in the hat with the hoards of others who are looking for an easy finish. The winner will be selected totally at random. Just be sure that there is a way I can get in touch with you to get your snail mail address (in other words, if you're a "no reply" commenter, include a current email address).

And don't forget to check out the other orphans up for adoption.

I would love to see your finished project and it would be nice if you come back here from time to time to see what I'm up to.

Throwback Thursday

Gwennie's House

"Gwennie" is Gwen Marston. For almost a quarter century she has been known in the quilting world for "liberated quilt making." In other words, she was doing improv when improv wasn't cool.  I have to say that of all the well-known quilters of the day, Gwen was one of the most influential to me. (Some day I plan to write about all the quilters who inspired me early on ...)

I took a "Liberated" class with Gwen at the Indiana Heritage Quilt Show in Bloomington (the same year I discovered Sara Nephew and became enamored with 60-degree angles).  In Gwen's class I made liberated/wonky stars and this liberated house:

I don't remember if I added the cheater squares at that time or later.

Lori at Humble Quilts and 4 of her friends are collaborating on "Gwennie Inspired Medallions."  I have enjoyed following the monthly progress of those working on their medallions, and I got to thinking about the medallion I made after taking Gwen's medallion workshop at her Beaver Island Retreat.

Gwen's House

I lopped off those on-point squares without hesitation -- not sure if I could bring myself to do that now. Guess I need to lose the tight pants, huh?

Down the Rabbit Hole

Another Case of QADD

Please tell me I'm not the only one with Quilter's ADD!

Here's the route I have taken down the rabbit hole over the last week:

1.  Survey UFOs for potential One Monthly Goal.  I chose one and made quick progress on Star Gazing.

Star Gazing

2.  Put second UFO on design wall.  With my quick success on project 1, I put the blocks for Jubilee up where I could start thinking about the next step.

Jubilee

I felt the white grunge background was boring and couldn't find another suitable sashing fabric.  No, let me amend that -- I didn't like the blocks well enough to put the effort into finding something. (Also, last two borders are still not on Project 1!)

3. Put unloved blocks in the "Adopt Me" bin.  So I decided to put those twenty 11" blocks up for adoption when the Orphan Adoption Event begins later this week.

Oh, wait! What's this? A sandwich bag filled with jewel-tone 45-degree diamonds that I cut for Hunter's Star about 10 years ago.

4.  Design modern/minimalist quilt using diamonds.  Wouldn't those diamonds look nice set in a solid gray background? Surely my experience with 60-degree diamonds can be translated to 45-degrees ... I wonder what it would look like ... hmmm, I don't have the right shade of gray ...

5.  Drive to fabric store.  Four yards of Kona Silver should do the trick!  Got a good start on the diamonds -- some on the side, some on the point -- but I ask myself, How to arrange them? Should I have an organized pattern? Should I have an organized color scheme?

Diamond Dew Drops

6. Step across to husband's side of the studio to get a better perspective.  Say, wonder what's in that box labeled "9-Patch Bonanza." It's the leftovers from Cbex Mix which was made from leftover 9-patches from Wink & a Smile (still unfinished, by the way).

7. Finish making 31 more 9-patches.  Why not? The box was open, the strips and squares were there, it won't take much time ...

In the end I couldn't decide on a setting so it went back into the stack of boxes.  Gosh, I really should do something about this mess he has to look at all the time ...

Projects on the hearth -- why not?

So I reorganized this area.

8. Inventory all UFOs.  In keeping with my recent pledge to leave myself more notes, I decided to look in every project box to see what needed to be done. I know! I'll make a spreadsheet where I can prioritize UFOs based on the amount of effort needed to complete ....

This all transpired over the course of a week and the last two borders are still not on Star Gazing!

It's been a busy and eclectic design wall lately so I'll link up with Judy at Patchwork Times for Design Wall Monday.

September Goal

Making it easy on myself

Since I am already 90% finished, I hereby declare my official One Monthly Goal (OMG) for September is to completely finish this flimsy.

Star Gazing

Note all the Rainbow Scrap Challenge rosy reds!  All it lacks is top and bottom borders.  Is that cheating? Nah!

Unofficially, I plan to finish adding inner and outer borders to Trellis Garden (last month's alternate OMG) ...

Trellis Garden

I had one more thing I was thinking about working on, but decided it wasn't worth the effort and so those blocks will go into the next Orphan Adoption event (coming up soon, if I remember correctly).  Keep your eye on this blog if you are interested in twenty 11" blocks!

I'm checking in with Heidi at Red Letter Quilts. Hop over there and see what other OMGs  are on the table this month.

DWM - Note to Self

Make More Notes to Self!

Here's what was on my design wall this morning.

Star Gazing

I started this in December 2013. I completed all the blocks in March of this year.  When I pulled it back out of the box last week, I made the assumption that the blocks had been squared down to 15-1/2". Should have made a note to myself.

The pattern said the horizontal sashing should measure 51-1/2". I learned a long time ago to not cut to the pattern measurement, but put a pin where the end should be.

The first row of blocks came out to 52". However, instead of stitching that sashing on, I worked on the next row of blocks which measured 51-1/2", as did the next two rows. After a little adjusting of seam lines (and losing a few points) I whittled that first row down to size. SO glad I hadn't stitched the sashing on without checking the others! And SO put out with myself that I had not left myself any notes.

Flange made

By the end of the day I had put a tiny flange on all four sides. And began attaching the border.

Pink flange, teal border

This should be an easy finish tomorrow (flimsy).

Linking up with Patchwork Times for Design Wall Monday.