Four Patch and Rails Top

It's a top!

Four Patch and Rails

56 x 70

I'm trying to empty a box of 4 inch width scraps that I have accumulated over the years from others. I usually have a couple of Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) projects going for each width of scraps but sometimes I just have so many odd lengths of different colors so I decide to just see how many quilts I can make to empty the box. 

For this quilt I picked out all the browns, oranges and yellows as well as a few lighter neutrals. Everything in this quilt came out of the box so there's a mix of fabrics. I think almost all of the scraps have been given to me by others. 

After I pulled out the pieces I had to work with I divided the scraps into the piles long enough for a rectangle 4 x 7.5 and piles of pieces enough for a 4 inch square. I then divided each of those piles into lights and darks.  That gave me an idea as to number of Four Patch and Rails I could make and size of comfort quilt.  With these colors and fabrics I thought a larger comfort quilt would be better than a child sized comfort quilt.  Any of the colors less than a 4 inch square went into a baggie and back into the box for a Coins quilt to be made later. 

I still have more pieces in the 4 inch width scrap box so stay tuned for another top soon. 

My box of 4 inch width scraps is a large flat rate USPS size.  

So far I've made the following tops/block sets with scraps in that box:

1. Yankee Puzzle Top

2. Yankee Puzzle #2 block set of 48 blocks

3. Blue/Orange Four Patch Top (also used orange solid)

4. Basket Weave (also used orange solid)

5. This top - Four Patch and Rails

And sew on...

***

Oh joy! I received a box of beautiful fabric goodies from Barbara yesterday. Oh, I especially loved the rose themed fabrics! You know I love roses in any form!

***

Looks like another day without rain so I'll be out in the gardens most of the day. The soil temps are still not even up in the 60s yet so I've been waiting to plant my cucumbers and squashes and some flowers that germinate best in warmer soil.  Yesterday I spent most of the day planting my dahlia tubers. Dahlias are not hardy here so I have to dig up and store those for the winter. Since I'm getting older I might have to invest in some big pots for them so I don't have to do so much digging. But digging and planting Dahlia tubers is definitely a good work out. I feel it all over today!

 

Greek Key Flimsy

It's a top!

Greek Key

54 x 72

What was in the bag in the box? 

I started working on these nine inch finished Greek Key blocks a few months ago because I had accumulated a lot of red 1.5 inch width scraps.  Now that bag of red scraps in the box of 1.5 inch width scraps is empty. My goal by year end is to completely empty the 1.5 inch width scrap box. 

I had almost enough scraps in my bag. I cut my scraps from longest strip down to shortest strip before I started making blocks. So I had a pile of 1.5 x 9.5, 1.5 x 8.5 and so on. When I got to the shortest lengths I had run out of scraps so had to cut a few 1.5 inch width strips from red scrap chunks. I was not going to use the "Merry Christmas" scraps but finally decided it's a scrap quilt and anything goes. 

I have a green one with light green and a brown one with creams in the works.

And sew on...

***

The rainy days have ended so for the next couple of days I will be back in gardening mode so may not get much sewing done. 

 

Sixteen Patch Finish

It's a finish!

Sixteen Patch

40 x 50

I started making blocks back in 2024. I wanted to use a little pile of red, blue and yellow novelty scraps. 

I quilted it on my sewing machine with horizontal and vertical lines. 

I've been in gardening mode but it has been rainy the last couple of days so I put in some time at the sewing machine and did a little (very little) housework. 

The back.

And sew on...

***

There's not only BIG creatures on the quilt back. I spied a giant creepy looking moth on my back door today.

An image search gave me the feedback that it is the Giant Silk Moth, Antheraea polyphemus

It's about as long as my finger and evidently has a 4-5 inch wing span. 

AI Overview:

Based on the image provided, here are some details about the creature:

• This is a Polyphemus moth (Antheraea polyphemus), a species of giant silkmoth known for its large size and distinct eye spots on its wings.
• The large, feathery antennae visible on the top of the head indicate that this specific individual is a male.
• These moths are widely distributed across North America and are harmless to humans.
• Adult Polyphemus moths do not have mouths and live for only a few days to mate, relying on energy stored from when they were caterpillars.
• ***
• I finished a book! The Child Without A Home by Ann Bennett. It is a WWII historical fiction inspired by the lives of the forgotten orphans of WWII and the "wolf children" or "wolfskinder. "
• "Forced to flee then-East Prussia to Lithuania at the end of World War Two, these orphaned German children survived hunger, cold and the loss of identity. Their fate has remained long overlooked by the German government."
• 
  
• "Wolfskinder" - German children orphaned after World War II in East Prussia, an area bordering the Baltic Sea that had been German territory between the two world wars and today corresponds to parts of Russia, Poland and Lithuania. The total number of wolf children can only be estimated. Some say there were up to 25,000 of them roaming the woods and swamps of East Prussia and Lithuania after 1945. Russians were forbidden from taking in these "fascist children."

"The kids were told to go to Lithuania where there would be food. If they were lucky, the "Vokietukai," or little Germans in Lithuanian, passed through villages with sympathetic residents on their march to the Baltic states. These locals would put out buckets of soup in front of their doors. If the children were not so lucky, residents would set their dogs on them."

After I finished the book I did more research  and found some very interesting true stories of some of the "Wolf Children". 

 ***

Oh joy! I received a box of fabric goodies from Ry Lynn! I have gone through it all and I already know what comfort quilts I will be making with some of the charm squares. 

Basket Weave Top

It's a top!

Basket Weave

39 x 45.5

In a previous blog post I mentioned that I met my goal for the only block I was making from scraps in my 4 inch width scrap box. Most of the scraps in there have been given to me over time. When I receive a box of scraps I take my little six inch ruler and measure the width of scraps and put them into the appropriate scrap box. Larger scraps I call chunks are sorted and stored by color. I try to use smaller scraps as I receive them in one of the many blocks I have going but with my husband John's health problems off and on I sometimes don't have enough time to sew all the scraps as I receive them. 

Well, now that you see my 4 inch width scrap box overfloweth I decided to see what could be made with the contents and hopefully soon just end up storing a baggie of 4 inch squares. 

I pulled out all of the blue scraps in the 4 inch width scrap box and made a Four Patch top. 

After that I still had some blue 4 inch width scraps. I found enough pieces I could cut into 4 x 7 rectangles to make some Basket Weave blocks. 

I was recently gifted a bolt of orange fabric and since orange is the complement of blue I decided to use orange 2 x 7 strips for the sides of my Basket Weave blocks. 

And sew on...

Finished Or Not Finished Friday at Alycia Quilts

***

I finished a book - Remember Us by Robert Edsel with Brett Witter. Oh my goodness this was a good book! I highly recommend it.  It is a WWII non-fiction.

Summary from the Robert M Edsel website: 

"Remember Us is a compelling ensemble narrative that chronicles the lives of twelve central characters over a six-year span including Lieutenant Colonel Robert Cole, the first member of the 101st Airborne to receive the Medal of Honor; Sergeant Jeff Wiggins of the 960th Quartermaster Company, who escaped the poverty and racism of Alabama only to face a new indignity: digging graves in wartime Europe; and Frieda van Schäik, a teenager who falls in love with an American soldier. 

"In this rich, dramatic, and suspenseful story, both the horrors of war and the transcendent power of gratitude are captured, showcasing the extraordinary measures the Dutch have taken to thank their liberators. Drawing on never-before-seen letters, diaries, and other historical records, Edsel shows the painful price of freedom, on the battlefields and inside American homes.  

"Remember Us is exactly the book we need—a reminder that grief is universal, that humanity knows no national or racial boundaries, and that we all want to be remembered, somehow, someway, by somebody.  "

***

In the flower gardens some different types of Aquilegia (Columbine) are blooming as well as different types of Alliums. 

And sow on... 

Four Patch Flimsy

It's a top!

Four Patch 

42 x 56

In a previous blog post I mentioned that I met my goal for the only block I was making from scraps in my 4 inch width scrap box. Most of the scraps in there have been given to me over time. When I receive a box of scraps I take my little six inch ruler and measure the width of scraps and put them into the appropriate scrap box. Larger scraps I call chunks are sorted and stored by color. I try to use smaller scraps as I receive them in one of the many blocks I have going but with my husband John's health problems off and on I sometimes don't have enough time to sew all the scraps as I receive them. 

Well, now that you see my 4 inch width scrap box overfloweth I decided to see what could be made with the contents and hopefully soon just end up storing a baggie of 4 inch squares. 

So, first I pulled out the blue scraps in the box. I had some sets of blue two 4 inch squares and longer pieces that would yield two squares enough for Four Patches for a small comfort quilt. Then I had to decide on an alternate color for the blocks. I didn't have enough of anything in the scrap box. 

I was recently gifted a bolt of orange fabric and since orange is the complement of blue I decided to use orange to complete my Four Patches. 

And orange is such a happy color too!

Now on to the next project to come out of the 4 inch width scrap box! I am still really in gardening mode so not getting much sewing done except when it is a rainy day so it may take me awhile to empty out that box but that is my goal.

And sew on...

***

Thank you, everyone, for the positive thoughts, prayers and best wishes. I think they are working. John seems a little perkier each day but still fighting off that jaw bone infection and pain and hoping to get that surgery to repair his jaw some day soon. 

***

These Iris are beautiful but grow like weeds. I separated them one year and threw them on a compost pile and they grew out of the compost. I now have little patches of them everywhere. They look nice in a vase too. 

 

Green Wonky Log Cabins

Green Wonky Log Cabin blocks

(I've also seen Wonky Log Cabin blocks in one colorway called Duckworth quilts)

6 inch

I need to take count of how many blocks I have now and how many I need for a quilt. 

I'm using the smallest of green scraps and ones with straight sides. If they are triangle shaped they go into the crumb pile.  Between the red centers and the greens I'm trying to include a lot of novelty scraps to make it a kind of I Spy quilt. 

And sew on...

Monday Musings at Brenda's Songbird Designs

***

I was one of the winners of the Stay At Home Round Robin 2026 (SAHRR 2026) random drawing. I won 2 charm packs of my choosing as well as a $50 gift certificate from Fat Quarter Shop.  I can never decide on what fabrics to buy so settled for a yard each of colors of the rainbow as well as 3 yards of muslin I can use with my 30s and civil war reproduction fabrics. And for the charm packs...well, I do love roses and hearts!

I finished two of the three tops I made for the SAHRR 2026.

I am very thankful to the hostesses of the SAHRR. I have participated for several years. I am also thankful for all of the sponsors especially the Fat Quarter Shop! 

And my two SAHRR 2026 finishes as well as 20 other quilts will be dropped off today to be shipped via UPS to the coordinator of Wrap-A-Smile.

Wrap-A-Smile partners with   Rotaplast International, Inc.

"Rotaplast International, Inc. is committed to helping children and families worldwide by eliminating the burden of cleft lip and/or palate, burn scarring, and other deformities. Working with local professionals, Rotarians, and other organizations, Rotaplast sends multidisciplinary medical teams to provide freely reconstructive surgery, ancillary treatment, and training for the comprehensive care of these children." Wrap-A-Smile provides each child undergoing surgery with a quilt. 

Just an FYI - I ship through Pirate Ship for significant cost savings. 

 

Orange Scraps

Yankee Puzzle

9 inch

I have been trying to use up a small box of 4 inch width scraps and squares. One of the blocks I have been making using those scraps is Yankee Puzzle using the tutorial at Suzy's Scraps. Note that I am using 4 inch squares and not 3.5 inch squares used in the tutorial.

I started making these last year and made one small comfort quilt top consisting of blocks with two colors. This set consists of color plus neutral. I will make a larger comfort quilt with this set consisting of 48 blocks. 

After I made the two orange blocks I noticed I only needed 5 more blocks to reach my goal of 48 blocks so I dug into my 4 inch width scrap bin and found pieces for the 5 blocks. 

Goal of 48 blocks met!!!

I still have a box of 4 inch width scraps. I think this month I will try to make a plan to use these and maybe empty the box. More on that later. 

Uneven Nine Patch'

7 inch

Made with 3.5 inch width scraps and multicolor 1.5 inch sashing. 

Buckeye Beauty

6 inch

Made with scraps found in the 3.5 and 2 inch width scrap bins plus black.

NOT Disappearing Four Patch (ND4P)

9 inch

I like the look of the Disappearing Four Patch block; however, I don't like the method of making a Four Patch and then cutting it up to make another block. I just cut for the end result. 

I made these with orange scraps in the 3.5 inch width scrap bin and some solid scraps. After I made them I realized I have been making these with plaid scraps and solids in order to use up plaid scraps. So now I guess this is a new start. Instead of just solids I will use blenders and tone on tones (TOTs) with the scraps in the Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) color of the month. 

And here's the ones made with plaid scraps. 

I added an orange round to my Giant Potato Chip quilt. It is now a 12.5 inch square. 

Orange Hollow Nine Patch

9 inch

Made with 3.5 inch squares

Pink Potato Chip

6 inch

Made with 1.5 x 2.5 inch rectangles

And sew on...

RSC ScrapHappy Saturday

***

My husband has a fractured jaw - the result of osteoradionecrosis (bone necrosis due to radiation for cancer at base of tongue). Fractured jaw is infected (osteomyelitis). They put him on an antibiotic best for bone infection as well as a chlorhexidine mouth rinse hoping to help fight the infection. He was scheduled for a presurgical evaluation and consult with ENT on May 8 at the University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics hoping to get surgery scheduled to fix the jaw. BUT on May 6 they called and cancelled the May 8 appts. and moved them out to June 12. They said they hoped to clear up the osteomyelitis a little more before surgery. Evidently antibiotics work more slowly on bone infections and so they said the May 8 appt. was "too soon". The June 12 appt. will be about six weeks out from when they started him on the antibiotic.  And so we are again playing a waiting game. 

***

Oh, the weather was beautiful yesterday. Finally a day I haven't needed to wear a coat. We are past the last frost date of April 30 but the night time temps have been dipping into the 30s and daytime temps in the 40s-50s. Today it is supposed to reach temps in the 70s. Yesterday I worked outside most of the day and I think I will again today.