It's A Top! Low Volume Wonky Log Cabin

It's a top!

54 x 72

I made the blocks for this one last month when I worked on emptying out a box of srings. 

9 inch wonky log cabin blocks with low volume strings. Each block has a pastel pink center. 

This quilt sings. 

And this quilt has a heart. 

And sew on...

Finished or Not Finished Friday at Alycia Quilts

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CELEBRATE! (my word of the year)

May 22 - Shared the bounty. Delivered my homegrown asparagus, rhubarb and peony bouquets to a few people. 

May 23 - Received a box of someone's quilt back trimmings.  It was so fun to look at all the different fabrics. 

 

Quilts of September #29

Quilts of September #29 

Pneuma

(the vital spirit, soul, or creative force of a person)

74 x 87

I finished the top in March 2020. The quilt started with some low volume strings, these hearts and a picture of a vintage string quilt. 

I big stitched hand quilted it with a variety of pastel perle cottons. 

Technically this is not a quilt since it does not have batting. It's a summer quilt or coverlet. 

After finishing 28 quilts this month for donation (a couple will be gifted) I finished this one for me.

And that's the grand finale for September.  Since I hurt my back in a fall and am still in a little pain (mostly when I get up and down from seated position)  I won't be getting on the floor to pin baste any more quilts for a few days.  

 

Milquetoast Is Finished!

 It's a finish!

Milquetoast

85.5 x 85.5

Hand quilted with perle #12 and #8

 The block is called Bright Hopes and finishes at 4.5. I started making blocks back in July 2019 as a way to use a small box of low volume scraps.  

The top was finished in August 2019. 

This is not really a quilt because I did not use any batting so there are not three layers. I guess you could call it a coverlet or summer quilt. I named it Milquetoast because it was quite a departure from the bright and wild quilts I normally make. 

  Big stitch hand quilting was started in March 2020.  I used low volume threads I had on hand in white, ecru, gray, light blue, yellow and pink. I stitched both vertical and horizontal lines and did no marking. 

This is quite a collection of low volume scraps accumulated over many years. The last pieces of many fabrics are in this coverlet but I still have some yardage or chunks of others. The cherries and ginghams went into several quilts. The ladybug, Christmas holly and toys, little blue roses,  and the kites came from the thrift store long ago. The pale orange and purple butterflies were some of the first pastels I ever bought to make H swapped blocks. I made several hotpads with that recipe fabric...Oh what a summer quilt full of memories!

 The backing was from the clearance bin at Hobby Lobby. I thought it looked like a summer sheet. Actually, I think it kind of makes the coverlet reversible. The threads I used for quilting match the colors in the backing.  I used the same fabric for binding. I was hoping to have enough fabric left for pillowcases but I didn't.  And so it goes. 

Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts

Oh Scrap! at Quilting is More Fun than Housework

Pneuma - A New Top

 Pneuma

1. (the vital spirit, soul, or creative force of a person)

It's a top!

74 x 87

It all started with a box of low volume strings and...

...with a few string heart blocks I made a few years ago.  My original intent was to make a whole quilt of String Hearts but then I decided I did not like the process. 

I had a  c. 1890 string quilt in my vintage inspiration journal. I decided those heart blocks would be a nice center row for this quilt and so I set about making my version. 

The Hourglass and HST rows were cut from low volume pieces from the 3.5 inch scrap bin and some were cut from scrap chunks. 

  Sometimes making a quilt from actual scraps and strings is a lot of work...far more work than just cutting up yardage. Taming long unevenly cut strings with strings...mostly backing trimmings...is not often an easy task.  But I did enjoy the process. 

 Pnuema is now ready for quilting...someday. 

Now I'm ready for something bright and wild. 

No...I did not empty my box of low volume strings AND I now have a big shoe box of low volume crumbs and short strings.  What to do...what to do...hmmmm...

Oh Scrap! at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework

Not Hooping It Up

 I've been hand quilting this large 85 x 85 quilt I call Milquetoast.  It got that name because it pales in comparison to the loud and bright colors I prefer to use. But the Bright Hopes blocks were a nice way to use a box of low volume scraps accumulated over the years.  I finished the top back in August 2019 and I would say it is now in the hoop but it's not. 

I am not using a hoop for this one because I'm big stitching with long running stitches about 1/4 inch away from the sides of the long pieces and I didn't want to keep moving the hoop every few stitches or use multiple needles. 

 And speaking of needles I found some sashiko needles at Hobby Lobby so decided to give them a try. I'm using one of the longest ones and I'm glad I am. It seems that without a hoop to move and with a sashiko needle and big stitches that the stitching goes much faster. I'm using mostly white perle #12 but I don't think I have enough for the entire quilt so I'm filling in and stitching some rows with pink, blue, gray and yellow threads in perle #8 that I have on hand. (I'm not using that black thread. That was in my basket because I'm stitching french knot hair on a topsy turvy doll to be with it.)

I still have a long way to go but I'm moving forward and having a good time. 

I guess I'll also mention that this is a "summer quilt" and it has no batting. 

Oh Scrap! at Quilting is More Fun than Housework

Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts

It's a Flimsy! Milquetoast

 It's a flimsy!

Milquetoast

85.5 x 85.5

 The traditional block name is Bright Hopes and the blocks finish at 4.5 inches. 

There's several tutorials out there. I used the one at Red Pepper Quilts. 

 I named the quilt Milquetoast because it is quite a departure from my usual bright and wild quilts. 

 The reason I made it was because I wanted to use up a box of low volume scraps  

 Milquetoast doesn't have to be boring.  Milquetoast can be fun. 

I'm rather fond of Milquetoast. 

Finish or Not Finished Friday at Alycia Quilts

Peacock Party at Wendy's Quilts and More

Milquetoast

Traditional block is Bright Hopes. 

I've been making them from a small box of low volume scraps and now have 324 of them. 

Most of those scraps are now gone except for the white on white (WOW) fabrics because I've been using them as Garlic Knot backgrounds. 

I've been making a few each morning before I head out to weed the flower and veggie gardens and then I iron and count them when I get a big stack of blocks made.  I'm always pleasantly surprised when I take count.  I hardly ever cut all my pieces before I start a quilt...I cut some, then sew some, cut some, then sew some. 

When I first started making them I had no idea what size quilt all those scraps would make and figured out how many blocks were needed for two different sizes of quits. It just dawned on me as I was writing this post that my math was based on a four inch finished block and these blocks finish at 4.5 inches. So,  I just quickly did some calculations based on the 4.5 inch block. Good news...361 blocks will make a quilt 85.5 x 85.5. Although I don't really like square quilts they do work fine on my bed.  Now I only need 37 more blocks.  

Oh Scrap! at Quilting is More Fun than Housework

Moving it Forward Monday at Em's Scrapbag

Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt

Milquetoast

Traditional name for this block is Bright Hopes. Doesn't seem to fit with these little blocks made of low volume scraps.  And compared to most of my quilts this one appears timid, meek, unassertive and rather bland - Milquetoast. 

And yet I like making these little four inch blocks as much as I like eating chocolates or bacon flavored chips.  I'm going to keep making as long as I have low volume scraps.  I make a few blocks every day and now like magic I  have over 100 blocks.  I think when all is said and done I might even love Milquetoast.  And if not...no use crying over spilt milque...I'll give it away.   

Low Volume String Hearts

Low Volume String Hearts

I mentioned yesterday that in 2019 I want to concentrate on using selvages and strings. One of the string projects I'm working on is low volume string hearts - a February 2013 Block Lotto pattern.  Looks like I already hopped out of the low volume box. 

More later...