Saturday, March 25, 2023

Monkey (Wrench) Business


Five Inch Monkey Wrench Blocks in Green '30s Reproduction Fabrics

This month the theme in my little sewing space is 1930s.  The Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) color of the month is green.    I keep my '30s repro scraps in a bin all by themselves.  I had a lot of HST parts in there so I first pulled out all the 2.5 inch HST parts in green and made some Monkey Wrench blocks.   I've been making Monkey Wrench blocks in 3 sizes from scraps since last year and have quite the collection. Near the end of the year I will make some donation quilts with them.  I'm thinking for now that I will keep all of the ones made in '30s repro scraps in a separate box and decide later if there are enough for a quilt or two with just '30s repro Monkey Wrenches. 

When I was finished with the greens I moved on to the orange HSTs....

...then the yellows...

...the pink, purple and mixed colors...

...the reds...

...the blues...

...the browns.  

And that makes 65 five inch Monkey Wrench blocks made with '30s reproduction scraps. I also have an empty baggie that used to hold 2.5 inch HST parts. 

Speaking of five inches...this was the view outside my kitchen window this morning. Five inches of snow and it is still snowing. 

This was the view from the living room door out to the deck.   And it is still snowing. A few days ago I was outside in shirt sleeves most of the day pruning my blackberries and cleaning up flower beds. 

A few tree branches cracked a little and now laden with snow they are laying over the power line to the house. That kind of worries me. Guess I'll go sew.

And sew on...


 

18 comments:

The Joyful Quilter said...

Hoping your power holds, Cathy! The blocks you made are going to result in such a darling quilt. Happy stitching!

LIttle Penguin Quilts said...

We got some snow overnight here in Colorado, too. I guess that's March for you! Fun to see allthe sweet prints you have in the 30s repro bin - they're going to make some beautiful quilts!

Deb A said...

Oh no! That looks like heavy wet snow. Hope the power stays on for you. It is a beautiful sight though (from a snow lover who has zero change of getting snow where she lives now.) I love your blocks. What a pretty 30's quilt they are going to make.

Karen - Quilts...etc. said...

sorry about those heavy branches over the power lines - that doesn't sound good. That snow just looks so wet and heavy - and here I was complaining of almost 4 inches of rain yesterday - it soaks in - your snow will take a little bit to go away.

Exuberantcolor/Wanda S Hanson said...

We only got a bare dusting of snow from your storm. It is cold here though.
Your Monkey Wrench blocks are so cute in the 30s fabrics, such cheerful spring colors.

JCH said...

Love all the colors of your blocks. Makes it cheerful when working on them especially after looking outside. We're under a weather watch expecting another 25+ cm of snow :(

Nann said...

What a difference color placement makes -- esp. noticeable in the orange blocks. When will you have enough to make a quilt (or two...or six...)

Chantal said...

Whoohoo for an empty bag! I'm always so happy when I get to empty something. We are getting snow too. I'm so ready for Spring but it will probably be like June before we can see the lawn. Sigh! Hope you don't get a power outage because of the snow. Take care. ;^)

Quiltdivajulie said...

What a contrast between the happy cheerful colors in the photos with the monkey wrenches and then the cold, deep snow! I think your idea to pull out the blocks with the 30s fabric is a winner.

Sylvia@Treadlestitches said...

Such cheerful blocks! I love those 1930s prints. We had snow here today too, hope your power holds out.

Claire said...

What fun with scraps! I have a stash of 30s fabrics. They got set aside for brights--you prompt me to pull them out again.

Linda said...

Your 1930s fabric Monkey Wrench blocks are delightful! Such pretty colours. What a lovely quilt they will make. All that snow Oh! Is it usual to get a dump like this at the end of March? Poor you. I really dislike snow, even did as a child. Pretty to look at through the window but that’s all I can see in its favour.

Pamela Arbour said...

Loving your monkey
wrenches and the snow is impressive too. Thanks for including it. We've been in the low 80's in the Houston area.

mangozz said...

That snowfall looks so pretty but I never liked to shovel. Maybe the power company would like a heads up as it would be easier to remove the snow laden branches as opposed to repairing the lines after the fact. Also, it would be cheaper for them and better for you not to lose electricity. I shouldn't say this for fear of jinxing myself, but we have had an extremely easy winter as far as snow and even the temps haven't been as low as usual. I will probably regret having said anything now, though. (hope not)

Mystic Quilter said...

Can't wait to see all these tiny blocks made up into a quilt, great fabrics you've used. Thank you for posting your snow photos! We don't get snow here in Auckland, makes me miss the North of England where snow was in abundance in Winter.

Cindy Beal said...

Love your churn dash blocks, especially the greens! And the snow!!! So beautiful!!!! So jealous!!!! Where I live in NC, we have not had ONE flake!!!!!

Jenny said...

Oh wow, just look at that snow! And look at all those colourful Monkey Wrench blocks you have been churning out, way to go!

gayle said...

Loving all your monkey business!
And this winter certainly has been goofy, hasn't it? I hope that snow melts away quickly!