After A Couple of Crumby Days...

After a couple of crumby days I saw some exotic and rare Crumb Posies in bloom.

Some purple 8 inch Crumb Posies with red and blue Crumb Posies that started blooming way back in December 2021. 

“Our lives are but specks of dust falling through the fingers of time. Like sands of the hourglass, so are the days of our lives.” — Socrates.

"My life (for the last couple of days) has been crumbs falling through the fingers of time (and a sewing machine). Like crumbs in the hourglass, so are the days of our lives" - Me 

(But I have to say I've also been doing a little gardening between crumbs). 

The Hourglass blocks measure about 11 inches more or less. They start with a 12.5 inch block of crumbs.  I've been combining crumbs with solids in a complementary color.  I wished I had a brighter yellow solid to use but I didn't so went with what I had. 

And here with some other Hourglass blocks.  I can't believe I started making these back in January 2020! They have been on my Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) project list for a long time but I've always had so many other blocks on the list I guess these got left behind. I have 8 blocks and am aiming for 24. 

And sew it goes...

RSC ScrapHappy Saturday

 

Jots, Iotas, Smidgens and Whits

Jots, iotas, smidgens, whits, crumbs and orts...no matter what you call them they are itty bits of fabric. I want to concentrate on using them this year. I have some sorted by color; some sorted into cool and warm, black and white. Some are not sorted.   The ones that are sorted by color I hope to use in the Rainbow Scrap Challenge color of the month to make a few blocks. 

What I call crumbs are very small and usually irregular shaped scraps. I use those in some type of crumb block. The ones that are a little bigger and with straight edges are also crumbs but I use those in some sort of slab block. 

For crumb blocks I tried out some flower blocks that finish at 8 inches. I think I will continue with these next year. I used an old Block Lotto pattern called Violets to make the blocks. 

By the end of 2022 I hope to have a colorful garden of flowers. 

I'm thinking I make a couple more blocks with 4.5 inch crumb squares but have not finalized plans. More on that later. 

In 2020 I made a couple 12 inch Hourglass blocks from crumbs and a solid in a complementary color. I was going to make a lot more for a donation quilt but didn't have many solids so I could continue on. I think I may have a few solids or tone on tones to use now so hope to make more of these in 2022. And I hope I can find where I put these two. 

And I mentioned slabs earlier in this post. In 2019 I finished a slab quilt with heart I called Heartfelt. Now I think I will make another in 2022. 

In November I blogged about some of my other Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) plans for 2022.  Now I will add the above to the list. 

RSC ScrapHappy Saturday

 

Cleaning Out The 2.5 Inch Scrap Bin -- Part I

I dug into the 2.5 inch scrap bin and made 23 more Dakota Farmer blocks to complete a set of 80. The inspiration was a Bonnie Hunter Addicted to Scraps column. She made hers from 2 inch scraps (1.5 inch finished HSTs for a 6 inch finished block) but I made mine from 2.5 inch scraps (2 inch finished HSTs for an 8 inch finished block). 

These Hourglass blocks are the only other Rainbow Scrap Challenge project I have in process that uses 2. 5 inch scraps. I haven't made any for a couple of months (shown here are old blocks) because I'm out of black and BOB (black on black) fabric and am trying not to buy fabric unless it is for a backing.  The reason I started making these blocks was because I won 23 blocks in a Block Lotto in December 2019 and 23 was not enough for even a small quilt. 

I counted up my blocks and found a total of 74. I think that is enough for a small donation quilt set 7 x 10 (42 x 60) with four left over for the back or the orphanage. 

Long ago when I first started sorting scraps I found I had a LOT of 2.5 inch scraps so I started a bin (later moved to a box) of 2.5 inch scraps. Most were left over from making Happy Blocks with 6 inch centers and 2.5 inch sides or leftover from other blocks I made for swaps. As the years went on when I found I had a lot of scraps of a certain width I started a small box to hold scraps of that width. When I found the Rainbow Scrap Challenge (2013????) I decided to make blocks that used 2.5 inch scraps in the color of the month. Then later as the other bins became full I decided on other RSC projects that used other sizes of scraps. Thankfully my scraps have dwindled using this approach and I've had fun seeing what scraps I had to work with when the color of the month was called.  Now that my scraps have dwindled I have decided to try to use scraps as they are made BUT also keep scrap chunks by color. For me scrap chunks have always been anything greater than 4.5 inches and less than a FQ and I have kept those all together in a milk crate that started overflowing.  Now I have started storing those by color in separate containers.  

This year I emptied my 3. 5 inch scrap bin and my 4. 5 inch scrap bin. I have my 1. 5 inch scrap bin almost empty. I am still actively working with the 2 inch scraps and I hope to empty that bin next year when I am finished with several projects.   And that leaves my 2. 5 inch scrap bin which has always seemed to be full. Now that I have finished my RSC blocks that use 2. 5inch scraps I have a plan to empty the paper copier box  filled with bags for each color of 2.5 inch scrap. More on that plan tomorrow in Part II of "Cleaning Out the 2.5 Inch Scrap Bin". 

Rainbow Scrap Challenge ScrapHappy Saturday

 

Lil' Cowpokes and Lil' Cowgirls- Three Finishes

I have three finishes this week. 

I started the quilts back in February when I purchased some Michael Miller Lil' Cowgirls fabric for $3 per yard at Hobby Lobby. I figured it would make nice backings for donation quilts and I knew I had some odds and ends of bandana and cowpoke fabrics at home including another Michael Miller fabric - Lil' Cowpokes.  I finished the tops back in March . I also made a Strippie quilt  and paired it up with some backing but decided not to quilt it at this time because I may use both the Strippie top and backing as backings at some future date since I'm always short on backings and have quite a stack of tops that need quilting. 

I decided to get them quilted so I could use up some bits and pieces of batting. Normally I sew batting pieces together by butting the pieces up next to each other and then sew together with a wide zig zag stitch.  Sometimes while quilting my needle hits the joined area and has fits so this time I just decided to butt the pieces together and overlap a tiny bit while pin basting. I think I will do that from now on because I had no problems with quilting any of these three. 

Happy Cowpokes

40 x 60

I had a partial set of Cowpoke themed Happy Blocks in my Happy Place (box of various partial themed Happy Blocks) and some 6.5 inch center squares already cut to make a few more. 

I used to participate in a variety of Happy Block swaps with numerous groups back in the day. For this swap we sent around 10 centers to everyone in our little group. The centers were bordered with 2.5 inch strips and sent back. We then had a set of Happy Blocks framed in quite a variety of fabrics.  

Happy Blocks are a quick and easy way to use novelty fabrics and make nice quilts for kids or adults depending upon the fabrics used. They can be made with any size center and sides depending upon what is on hand. 

I used to also swap novelty or I Spy squares in a variety of sizes.  Since I was short a few Happy Blocks for a quilt I dug through my I Spy squares looking for squares I could use to add to the mix. 

I quilted all of these with some lassoes. 

Wild horses are on the back. This quilt will go to Quilts Beyond Borders.  They provide quilts to children in underserved areas of the world and have both international and domestic initiatives. 

Lil' Cowpokes

42 x 56

I mentioned I had some 6.5 inch squares of I Spy fabrics and so used them as starter to make this quilt. 

I made 6 inch finished Hourglass blocks as alternate blocks. 

I used that discounted Lil' Cowgirl fabric on the back.  

Lil' Cowpokes

40 x 56

I made some 12 inch finished Sawtooth Stars to use up bits and pieces of bandana prints. 

The centers were cut from a little pieces of Lil' Cowpoke fabric and I think that's the last of it. 

 And again I used that deeply discounted Lil' Cowgirl fabric on the back. 

These last two quilts may be donated too but I'm going to keep them on hand for a little while. I have 31 nieces and nephews (that's not counting niece and nephew spouses) and so there's always a new arrival that needs a quilt or a grandparent that needs a quilt for when baby visits.

Finished or Not Finished Friday at Alycia Quilts

Peacock Party at Wendy's Quilts and More

Purple 2.5 Inch Scrap Edition

This week I dug into my 2.5 inch width scrap bin and dug out my purples. 

I made five 8" (finished) Dakota Farmer Stars. 

And I made six 6" (finished) Hourglass blocks.  I won over 20 of these in a Block Lotto so decided to make enough blocks for a twin sized donation quilt. I think I will set these on point and then you might see why they are called Hourglass. 

Looking forward to a new Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) color for September. Will it be red or yellow? 

Rainbow Scrap Challenge ScrapHappy Saturday

 

Guess What!

Guess what! 

(No, not chicken butt)

I've finished my current 20 minute challenge. I challenge myself to work at least 20 minutes a day on a UFO that has blocks that are rather boring or tedious to make.  That UFO has been Clarissa which has been inspired by a quilt made by Clarissa White Alford that I saw back in 2016 at Kathy's Quilts. 

I now have 36 twelve inch blocks that consist of 36 two inch hourglasses. That's a total of 1296 hourglasses and a total of 5184 pieces. 

I've been looking around in my stash for something to use for sashing. I don't have a lot of pieces of yardage of any length but I did figure I could use this rose themed fabric since it has some blues and pinks in it just like the blocks. I usually don't dither a lot and just go with the first thing I find in the stash but after all the work of making all those hourglasses 20 minutes each day I didn't want them to get lost in the quilt. The roses are too busy I think. 

I have a lot of pieces of Kona Snow that I  have on hand as background fabric for my 30s reproduction prints. I think I will use that for the sashing. 

Now I need to do some sashing through the snow.

Still in the Pink

 This week I worked with my 2.5 inch pink scraps because pink is the Rainbow Scrap Challenge color of the month. 

I made three Dakota Farmer 8 inch blocks. 

 And then I made six Hourglass blocks that finish at six inches. 

 Then I cut the rest of the pink 2.5 inch scraps into 2.5 x 3.5 rectangles for a quilt that will require 800 of those little rectangles.  Then I cut squares for some unknown future project. Then I sewed the pieces that were less than a 2.5 inch square into strips for a future Chinese Coins quilt. 

Then I grabbed a couple of pink scrap chunks and made two Churn Dashes that finish at 14 inches. 

Now I need to check out the 2 inch scrap bin and see what I scraps I have. 

Rainbow Scrap Challenge ScrapHappy Saturday

Blue-green 2.5 Inch Scraps

This week I worked with my 2.5 inch scraps and made some Dakota Farmer Stars...

...and Hourglass blocks. 

Rainbow Scrap Challenge ScrapHappy Saturday

Clarissa and Kathy Inspired

 Clarissa blocks #4 and #5

Clarissa's quilt inspired Kathy and her blocks then inspired me.   

You know I love vintage quilts!

I'm  slowly (very slowly)  making these blocks. 

I now have 5 of them and have a long way to go.  I'm not in a hurry. 

Kathy (Kathy's Quilts) has a lot of blocks finished and they look awesome! 

Here's four of the five. 

Five don't make for a good picture and these barely fit on my cutting- mat -covered -with- batting -propped -against- the -wall - design-wall. 

MoROSE Garden

MoROSE Garden is now a top!

It measures 84 x 96 and has been a UFO since 2012.  

How do I know that? Because I blogged about how things become UFOs in my world back in October 2012. 

Fast forward to this year. I'm determined to finish up all the unfinished things around here now that I'm retired.   I had forgotten about these 4 inch hourglass units but found them last month in a bag in my box of rose themed fabrics. 

I also found a magazine with the inspiration photo and some math that looks like the block count and layout?   Anyway...I could see that the magazine photo was only inspiration because I didn't follow the instructions that went with it.  My hourglass units are four inches. The hourglass units in the photo are 3 inches and are made using a different method.  

Also in the bag was a strip of 20 hourglass units by 5 rows all sewn together with LOTS of pins in it. (Pins removed before photo taken).  It looked like a vodoo doll with all those pins.  I think there were more pins in this than my pincushion.   The pins marked all those intersections where the points didn't meet perfectly which was almost every intersection.   This Type A personality could not handle this imperfection so the poor quilt section with pins and unused hourglass units have been fermenting in a bag in a box for almost 5 years. 

So what to do? What to do?  I ripped out the five rows that bothered me so I was back to 500 hourglass units.  Now, I hate ripping but I told you I want to finish UFOs so rip, rip, rip I went while I drank a glass (or two) of homemade wine on the deck and listened to the birds serenade me (these birds don't sew like in the animated version of Cinderella - didn't those birds dress her too? or was that some other fantasy?)  I had to rip because I needed a new start in order to finish this UFO.   

Then I threw that Type A lady in the bag and into the box and locked her away. And I gave myself permission to be imperfect.  I still had to try my best.  And with that I sewed like the wind. 

And the heavens didn't open up and lightning strike me dead.  No quilt police came knocking at my door.  BUT a UFO is that much closer to a finish.