WITB #3 - 25 Sawtooth Stars in Greens, Oranges, Purples

Sawtooth Stars

 10 inch

At the end of August I showed you a box of 3 inch width scraps that I was going to try to empty by the end of September. And I also was wondering how many different quilt tops I could get out of that box of scraps. 

I pulled the orange, green and purple scraps that were long enough for either backgrounds or star points. I was able to find enough for 25 Sawtooth Stars. For the centers I used what I could find in the box I have with some 5.5 inch squares. I also found a couple of 5.5 inch orphan blocks in green that I used. 

I want 48 Stars for a 6 x 8 (60 x 80 inch) donation quilt  and now only have 25 from the box I want to empty so will set these aside for now and finish the rest from scrap chunks later on. 

I previously blogged about the other 6 Stars I made from the box of 3 inch scraps. 

And sew on...

CELEBRATE! (my word of the year)

Sept. 1 - Two hummingbirds in the zinnias. I watched them for a long time. I rarely see two of them together. Every once in awhile one would fly off and then come back and it looked like it would tag the one left in the zinnias and they would both fly off together but then come back. I was working in the garden so it was a nice break from weeding just to sit on my garden stool and watch. 

Sept. 2 - Labor Day - I was thinking of all of the paying jobs I've had in my life. I started babysitting when I was 13. I think I baby sat almost every Friday and Saturday night and during the summer I sometimes babysat during the days too. Most of the jobs came from folks I knew through church. I think I quit babysitting when I was 16. When I was 15 I got a job working the summers at the soda fountain at Howard Johnson's. I also worked there a few evenings and weekends when I turned 16. I saved my babysitting money and money from working at the soda fountain and bought my first car when I was 16. It was a chevy corvair I bought for $75 from a guy dad knew. It was the car Ralph Nader wrote was unsafe at any speed. Well, I didn't have to worry about it for too long because some guy ran a stop sign and totaled my car. The car must have been safe enough because I was unharmed. Since I was without transportation I quit the job at the soda fountain during the school year. The following summer I started working at Bishop's Cafeteria. I also worked after school and weekends when school started.  I bought another car - a Ford Fairlane for $135 - and also made a little money buy picking up my sister's friends to take them to and from school. That money mostly went toward gas. Most of the rest of my paychecks went into savings for college; however, sometimes I would treat myself to a new record album or fabric to make a new dress. I worked at Bishop's Cafteria for a number of years and learned how to do most of the jobs -- baker, cook, veg cook, salad maker. My fav job was baker. I worked at Bishop's on and off through my second year of college. That's where  I met my future husband! I paid for college as I went and earned some money away at college by doing odd jobs posted to the bulletin board like housework (raking shag carpets, cleaning gross ovens) and tutoring. I also worked as a maid for awhile. I quit college after two years because I ran out of money and didn't want to go into debt with loans. Meanwhile my Dad moved to FL and opened a cafeteria and my boyfriend (later my hubby) moved to FL to help him.   So, once again, I worked most jobs in the cafeteria. A few years later after a marriage and two kids we moved back to IA. I got a job as a baker and started saving for college once again. After we had some money saved so I could go back to college I got a job as a coordinator at Association for Retarded Citizens and worked with severely and profoundly retarted adults. I worked days, went to school in the evenings and hubby worked third shift so he could be home with kids during the day because we couldn't afford a babysitter. After I got an associate's degree in Business Computer Programming I started working for a Medical Lab as a computer programmer later I.T. Officer. I then took correspondence courses (that was before there were online classes and even before everyone had a computer, lap top or cell phone) to finish my bachelor's degree.  I paid for those courses by growing lettuces, dried flowers and herbs at Farmer's Market and later made things like wreaths with dried flowers, potpourri, lavender wands and sold at craft fairs.  I worked at the medical lab for a little over 30 years and then I retired.   I worked my way through college and did not go into debt so I don't understand those who do or who think they should not have to pay said debt.