Green Blocks Finished

The later blocks definitely look better than the first few, but I doubt I'll take the time to make more of them. These blocks are easy, but VERY time consuming. Admittedly, I did not have a tidy workstation set up with everything in reach so I was getting up to iron and cut quite a lot. 

To be honest, I don't love these blocks. I've made quite a lot of scrap quilts over the past couple of years and many of them had green fabrics so my green scrap supply was pretty picked over. These blocks would have looked a lot better with more medium greens in them. 

Anyway, this is my planned arrangement of the rainbow blocks when I'm finally finished making them.

I've already finished the red and yellow blocks a couple years ago, so I'll be back at it when purple, blue or orange next come up.

Linking up with 

Scrap Happy Saturday
Oh Scrap!

RSC Green Stained Glass Blocks

I've been making slow progress on my stained glass blocks the past few days. I'd forgotten how long these blocks take to make. I tend to make piles of scraps and try to match up sizes. Once I've gotten a pretty big pile, then I try to assemble them into finished blocks. There's a good video on how to make them here: How to Sew a Scrappy Stained Glass Block.

I've finished three blocks so far, they're along the top.

I need 12 green blocks total so I'll try to combine partially assembled chunks and finish up the remaining blocks this week.

Linking up with Needle & Thread Thursday.

Jan One Monthly Goal

My OMG for January is to finish BOTH Arlington Square twin-size quilts. I just finished assembling them last week and I'm hoping they won't get hung up in the closet and wait for some unspecified future finish.

These were made as part of last year's Rainbow Scrap Challenge and I had been hoping to finish them by the end of the year but I got distracted by too many other projects and didn't make it.

I am linking up with Elm Street Quilt's January OMG.

Tuesday ToDo #60

I have been very busy finishing UFOs this month. I decided before I would let myself start a new project I needed to spend the last couple of months of the year working on UFOs. I don't have to finish them all, but I did want to make a dent in them. I think I have.

This past week I finished the two Arlington Square twin-size flimsies I worked on during the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. My original plan was to make one big quilt, but then I decided I already have too many bed-size quilts so I split the blocks in half and made two smaller quilts. Those blocks are 14" so they're still pretty big.

I finished piecing, quilting, and binding this crib-size Broken Bricks leader-ender project I've had sitting around next to my machine for at least a couple of months. The border on this one is the leftover bits I cut off the Rhododendron Trail after I quilted it so all of it is scraps, except the backing. (This is the photo before I got it bound. I haven't yet taken a photo of it with the binding.) I believe I'll be giving this one to the Comfort Quilts program unless someone in my family gets in touch that they want it before the next quilt guild meeting.

I've finished binding this adorable panel I quilted for our local quilt guild for their Comfort Quilts program. I used some yellow flannel for the backing. The pantograph is a precious Baby Bunny pantograph designed by Donna Kleinke at One Song Needle Arts. It was perfect for this panel.

I've finished labeling and binding the Flowers for Nana Girl lap quilt. Photos will be updated after I have time to take them. This is definitely my favorite of all the RSC projects I worked on. I'll be keeping this one; likely the rest will be gifted to family/friends.

For this coming week, I would very much like to finish all the quilts I've quilted but not yet bound.

Bloom lap quilt

Sanctuary scrappy quilt (for the Comfort Quilts program)

Broken Bricks in purple and blues

Paducah Log Cabin

If there is time, it would also be nice to finish those Arlington Square quilts, but I suspect I will run out of time. Depending on how impatient I am, I may keep working on UFOs during the first couple of weeks of January and then start on Bonnie Hunter's latest mystery quilt.

Thanks to Linda for hosting the Tuesday ToDo for more than a year. I'm sure it is quite a time commitment to make a weekly post and then go and read the posts that folks link. I hope you know your efforts were appreciated.

RSC 2023 Plans

2022 was the first time I participated in Rainbow Scrap Challenge and I learned some things about what I like and what I don't. I've been thinking about how I want to approach 2023. I've realized I don't like super-scrappy projects and I think I need to constrain the colors on my projects to only two or three colors or more carefully plan projects with lots of colors.

For my projects, I want to pick my border fabric and then make the quilt in colors to match, instead of making a quilt and then trying to find something to use for the border. (That is how I end up buying more fabric when I already have mountains of stash.) When a new color is announced, I'll go find a fabric in my stash that will work for the border then pick scraps to go with it.

I do have one project I've been thinking about working on but I won't be able to sew blocks as I go along. I'll be cutting out pieces and then sewing them up at the end. This is the pattern and fabric I'm hoping to use for the border.

I think I will be making blocks for this project. I likely won't be using this border fabric again, but I didn't have the actual fabric imported into Electric Quilt.

And I hope to continue working on my Stained Glass quilt. Last year I finished the red and yellow blocks before it got too hot during the summer to run the iron all day.

I probably will make some really scrappy lap quilts throughout the year, but I'll make them for Comfort Quilts for our local quilt guild and I'll finish them and pass them on throughout the year.

Arlington Square Flimsies!

The Arlington Square flimsies are finished! 

This is a nickel quilt designed by Pat Speth from her Nickel Quilts book. This started out as a queen-size quilt but I decided I already have too many bed-size quilts so I made two smaller quilts with half the blocks. They are certainly not perfect, but somewhere mid-way through these quilts I decided done was better.

This is the third finish of my four Rainbow Scrap Challenge projects for the year. The only one I have left is the stained glass quilt and I'll just go ahead and roll it over into next year.

I'm linking up with Scrap Happy Saturday.

Trying to Finish Two More

 ...before the end of the year. I can probably make it. 

This is the Arlington Square quilt pattern. It's a nickel quilt designed by Pat Speth from her Nickel Quilts book. I will admit I accidentally made a change to the pattern that hasn't really turned out. In Pat's original design, she used scrappy squares through the block, not three-in-a-row as I've done here. I'm not entirely sure how I ended up making that change. It was unintentional and it did not improve the pattern.

Anyway, I spent the year making block parts with the rainbow scrap challenge and I'm trying to get this project finished before the end of the year so I can start fresh next year.

Here is where I am at. I made the border pieces then realized I'd need to make a couple more. I'll need to fit my inside sashing to make the blocks work, but I need the finished measurement first. I am not good at the math, but I'll give it my best shot to get this to fit right. 

Then, once I am done with this one, I get to do it all again, because I have another set of this many big blocks. LOL The race is on to finish them both by the end of the month.

Linking up with Scrap Happy Saturday and Oh Scrap!

Arlington Square Progress

Arlington Square designed
by Pat Speth

(This post is overdue because last week I managed to drop my fairly new MacBook computer and cracked the screen. Oops. An expensive mistake. So my computer spent the last week in the shop and I was unable to post blog posts until I got it back so I have a lot to put into one post.)

When I originally started Pat Speth's Arlington Square pattern for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge, I was thinking it might take me two years to finish. One year to finish the block corner pieces, and then the second year to finish assembling the blocks and making the border pieces.

Since I've finished the other two quilts and there are still a couple of weeks left before the end of the year, I decided to try to finish this one as well. That would leave me with only one project rolling over to next year.

I pulled out all the block pieces I made throughout the year and laid most of them out in the photo below. I made about 10 each month and I used whatever scraps I found, including uglies, but I only used white fabrics for the light portion. 

Since I made so many quilts with white scraps this year, I actually ran out of them. Towards the end, I had to start cutting strips off yardage so I figured I might as well cut out the fiddly border on my Cricut. It definitely saved fabric because if I had cut them out by hand, I would have cut 6.5" strips and then clipped off the corner. Instead, I was able to cut out the little white triangles for the pinwheels from that bit of fabric.

After digging around in my scrap boxes for colored waste triangles I found nearly all that I needed.

I've spent a few hours this past week assembling the blocks. I actually made 24 of them, but I have decided I really don't need another bed-size quilt. I already have too many. So, instead, I've decided to make two throw-sized quilts and gift them.  Here is the first batch of blocks assembled. 

I haven't decided if I'm going to carry it on through the borders and then start the second, or build the second set of blocks and work on the borders for both at the same time.

Tuesday ToDo #59

I have been making steady progress in finishing projects this month. Since my husband and I don't do Xmas anymore, I usually have plenty of time on my hands during December.

I finished labeling and binding my Snake River log cabin quilt. The blog post will be posted soon.

I finished assembling and quilting the Flowers for Nana Girl quilt. It still needs a label and binding. I blogged about it here.

I've been working to finish the Arlington Square quilt which I started as a Rainbow Scrap Challenge project. To be honest, I am not loving how it looks. It's a little too scrappy for me, so I have decided to make two smaller size quilts rather than one large one and pass them on once they are finished.

I've also nearly finished quilting my Paducah Log Cabin quilt. There are definitely some mistakes, but I have learned quite a lot on this one. I've been trying to work with Glide thread and it is a challenge, but it stitches up beautifully so I definitely think it's worth the effort to learn how to use it. I've finished quilting the top and bottom borders and all the central blocks, but I still need to rotate the quilt in the frame and finish the last two border edges.

I'm linking up with Design Wall Monday and Tuesday ToDo.

Flowers for Nana Girl Quilted!

I really love how this Rainbow Scrap Challenge project has turned out! 

Again, this particular block design is another by Kim Brackett, from her book Scrap Basket Sensations. 

I struggled (again) to pick a pantograph for this one. It is very possible I have too many pantographs. LOL I had three pantographs I was trying to choose between and then at the last moment, I changed my mind and went with something entirely different. I ended up using the Villa Rose Panto 2 by Donna Kleinke of One Song Needle Arts. I used a thread that blended into the creamy background color.

This is another quilt that I will bind at the end of the month after I make the next batch of quilt labels.

Update: It's bound and finished!

Linking up with

Brag About Your Beauties,

Finished (or Not) Friday

Midweek Makers,

Needle & Thread Thursday

Peacock Party

Scrap Happy Saturday

TGI Finished Friday

Thanks for visiting!

Flowers for Nana Girl Progress

This project had been on my "want to make" list for many years. Joining the Rainbow Scrap Challenge this year finally gave me the excuse I needed to get started. This particular block design is another by Kim Brackett, from her book Scrap Basket Sensations. 

For my project, I decided to make these blocks entirely with batik fabrics and I also accidentally changed the block size. I misunderstood a diagram and I hadn't read all the words when I transcribed this design into Electric Quilt. It turned out fine though since I was using scraps and not a jelly roll (and Electric Quilt prints-out templates).

When I pulled out my RSC project bin I found I had finished twelve blocks throughout the year.

My original layout called for a total of sixteen blocks, but as I dug through my batik scraps again, I came up with lots more fabrics and I decided to add another row of four blocks.

I spent most of Saturday cutting out and making the additional eight blocks. Then, on Sunday, I spent nearly the full day making the sashing units and then assembling everything together.

While I was digging through my boxes of unironed fabric I ran across this amazing rainbow batik. It's perfect! I think it will make a great border fabric, and I think there might be just enough for the backing too. I really hope so.

Arlington Square

Since I doubt I'll do another blog post tomorrow (I've been way too busy sewing to write updates), I may as well add a list for this week:

• Finish the borders on the Flowers for Nana Girl lap quilt
• Make the backing and quilt it, too.
• Finish the Arlington Square quilt project too?

I have been really excited about wrapping up these RSC projects by the end of the year. It feels good to finish some UFOs before I move on to Bonnie Hunter's latest mystery quilt.

I'm linking up with

Design Wall Monday

Tuesday ToDo

Thanks for dropping by.

Bloom Quilted - FNwF

And just like that, it is quilted! I love my computer-guided long arm (when it works).

I spent a few hours the past couple of days assembling the Bloom blocks with the sashing and adding the outer borders. (These Bloom quilt blocks were designed by Kim Brackett, from her Scrap Basket Beauties book.) The borders were not scraps, they were from yardage, but all the rest of the materials were scraps.

By Friday evening, I was ready to quilt the Bloom lap quilt for my Friday Night With Friends project. I quickly assembled the backing and I even pieced some leftover batting pieces, which I really hate doing, but I thought it was appropriate for a scrap project. I used Quilter's Dream 70-30 Blend because I had a fairly large chunk of it left over.

I quilted it with the Let Love Bloom 1 pantograph, designed by Christy Dillon. I guess given the name, it seemed appropriate. LOL

I will probably wait until the end of the month to finish the binding as I'd like to make a quilt label for it. I may as well see how many more quilts I can finish this month and then make all the labels at once.

This finishes one of my Rainbow Scrap Challenge projects! Next up, Flowers for Nana's Girl. I need four more blocks and a whole lot of sashing units.

Update later in the month: Bloom is bound and finished!

I'll go ahead and link up with
Brag About Your Beauties 
Finished (or Not) Friday and
Scrap Happy Saturday.