From The Block Orphanage, The Happy Place And The Parts Department

I just finished three more tops all approximately 40 x 60. 

I have a box I call The Happy Place. In it are incomplete sets of Happy Blocks in a variety of different sizes. I used to participate in Happy Blocks swaps as well as swaps where we exchanged I Spy squares in a variety of different sizes. When I had some scraps left over I used to border the squares and throw them in The Happy Place. Many quilts for kids have come out of The Happy Place but I have not been in that place for awhile so thought I would visit. (C'mon, C'mon, get happy...)

I found a lot of school themed blocks. I just needed six more in that theme for a set. 

So I made six more Happy Blocks (6.5 inch centers; 2.5 inch sides for a finished 10 inch block) and then I made a top. 

Next I dug into the Orphanage and Parts Department and found blocks for a black, white and red theme with bits of blue. 

This contains blocks I had a difficult time making for a lotto that I deemed too imperfect;  Snowballs left over from a gifted quilt that was black, white and red all over...

More leftover Snowballs; an extra Rosebud block, an extra Star; lots of pieces and parts. 

For this one I dug out blocks of any color in kind of a Star theme and then some. 

The top were left over Friendship Stars from a Friendship Star/Nine Patch quilt I donated. I think those might also have been from a swap. Blocks were made with homespuns and muslin.   The Yellow and Green Stars came to me without corners. I added the corners and some sashing for that row.  The variety of four inch blocks came from The Parts Department. 

I see Nine Patch Stars I decided I didn't like to make; Spider Webs left over because  I guess I don't know how to count; Wonky Stars; Left over Garlic Knots...

... and left over Depression Blocks in a couple of different sizes. 

When finished most of these quilts will be donated to Quilts Beyond Borders. I used to also donate to Wrap-A-Smile, a Rotaplast partner but unfortunately most of their surgical missions have been cancelled for now due to covid. 

It is not often that we see the children who end up with quilts we have made; however, I have been fortunate to spot a few of my quilts in pictures others have taken over the years. You can imagine how exciting it is to spot a child with a quilt that came from my house!

Previous posts about folks with quilts I've made: 

Quilt in Myanmar

Quilt in Tanzania

A Quilt in Uganda and A Quilt in Ethiopia

A Quilt in Venezuela

Just one more thing...we would love to have you join us at the Sunshine Online Quilt Guild  if you enjoy making quilts for people in need.   We make quilts for kids around the world. We donate quilts to three programs: Wrap a Smile, Quilts Beyond Borders and Covered in Love. Wrap a Smile quilts go to kids, teens and adults undergoing cleft palate surgery. Quilts Beyond Borders go to under-served children, often in orphanages worldwide. Covered in Love quilts are adult sized and go to patients spending their final days in a hospital.  We mainly support those three programs; however, Sunshine members donate quilts to many other places near and dear to their hearts. 

Oh Scrap! at Quilting Is More Fun Than Housework

Out Of The Orphanage And Into A Quilt

It's been a whirlwind couple of weeks with lots going on (I won't bore you with all the details) but I'm hoping now life can get back to normal and I can get back to my quilting and gardening and life of a hermit. 

It's been too hot the last couple of days to work out in the gardens so I worked in the sewing room. This month I wanted to work on orphan blocks. So far I have made four donation quilt tops all about 40 x 60 but I have miles of orphans to go before I sleep. 

Blueberry Cobbler

For this one I used, as you can see,  mostly blue blocks. 

The blue nine patches came in a box of goodies a few years ago from a quilty friend. The kaleidoscope blocks were left overs from a Kaleidoscope of Butterflies quilt I made long ago. Some of the other blocks are odds and ends I sometimes make when I have bits and pieces left over from making a quilt. 

At the top are kaleidoscope blocks that I tried out with black and white backgrounds and did not like. There's a pig from friend Gayle, a Depression block leftover from a quilt I gave as a wedding present. I made a house and decided I did not want to build any more houses in that style.  There's some little four inch I Spy blocks left over from a quilt I made for a new grand nephew and a wonky log cabin leftover from making a donation quilt in 2017 that went to Wrap-A-Smile. Years later I saw a cute little boy in a foreign country wrapped in that quilt who had undergone a surgical procedure. 

Pretty in Pink

You guessed it! I used mostly pink blocks in this one. 

The Rolling Stone blocks were left over from two different quilts. The Drunkard's Path blocks came to me in pieces from a friend a couple of years ago. The Posies were supposed to be for a swap but before I sent them I realized I had cut my center pieces a little too big. Rather than rip and remake I just threw the blocks in the orphanage and made new ones for the swap. 

I made the Rosebud blocks on the top for a six inch block swap but they didn't turn out at six inches so I kept them and made a different six inch block for the swap. The Basket blocks were swapped and left over after I made a quilt. 

I made my granddaughters aprons when they were four years old with the fabric with the little girls cooking in the kitchen. They also got Easy Bake Ovens that year and I think after that year the ovens were discontinued. I know I made the granddaughters something with Strawberry Shortcake fabric-maybe pillowcases. I think my daughter still has her Strawberry Shortcake doll! I wonder if it still smells like strawberries. 

The bottom row consists of swapped Country Nine Patch blocks left over after I made a quilt a long time ago. 

For this one I pulled out blocks with black backgrounds and warm colors. 

I made some Rolling Nine Patch blocks for a swap that was later cancelled. The Four Patches came from the Parts Department. 

I went crazy filling Jars a few years ago. I made several Jar quilts but still had some left in the pantry. 

More Jars in a different size. The 25 patch HST blocks were made from waste triangles a long time ago. Time to use them! I cut apart a 16 patch block to make the row with pumpkins and sunflowers alternating with orange solid. 

And finally here's a top made with purple and yellow odds and ends. 

A friends sent me the purple/purple Ohio Stars in a box of goodies long ago. A different friend sent me the big Shoofly block. I spy a couple more Country Nine Patch blocks that were left over. 

A couple of really scrappy kaleidoscope blocks I made from scraps pieces left after making a Kaleidoscope quilt. I had the blue and yellow star block left over from a blue and yellow sampler I made eons ago. The HSTs and most of the other four inch blocks came from a bin of different four inch blocks I have filled up over the years. 

The Birds in the Air blocks were won in a block Lotto and left over after I made quilt top a few years ago that is still in the to-be-quilted pile. A few of those particular blocks had the points cut off so I put them in the orphan box. It's not really all that noticeable in an orphan block quilt. 

I think this meets a bunch of challenges! 

This month the Stashbusters challenge is to use orphan blocks and parts. 

The latest AHIQ challenge is to make an asymmetrical quilt because I normally tend to make symmetrical quilts. 

I made it my OMG (One Monthly Goal) to make at least one orphan block top this month.  Mission accomplished so at the end of the month I will link up with the OMG linky party at Elm Street Quilts. 

I'm hoping to put a couple more orphan block tops together before month end. Stay tuned!

Finished or Not Finished Friday at Alycia Quilts

 

Pea Soup Is Finished!

Pea Soup

64 x 80

It's a finish!

This is one of the tops I made last year from a box of 4.5 inch blocks accumulated over the years. 

I only used mostly green blocks to make the top. Most of the 4.5 inch blocks were Four Patches or HSTs. 

I combined the 4.5 inch blocks and some 4.5 inch squares and made a variety of 8 inch (finished) blocks. 

I then made 8 inch (finished) Hourglass blocks from a bag of green scrap chunks to use as an alternate block. 

I finished the top back in April 2020. 

I quilted it with diagonal, horizontal and vertical lines on my DSM in light green thread I had on hand. 

The binding is a dark green stripe. I was going to go with green scrappy but couldn't decide which greens to use and the green stripe was about the only green I had that would make it around the quilt so I went with that. 

The backing is a light green, very soft and silky and gently used sheet. 

Ready for giving or gifting!

 

For the Parts Department

Over the years I've found the Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) has been a fun way to use up scraps of a different color each month. I used to keep my scraps in bins by width and finally last year I emptied the 4.5, 3.5, 2.5 scrap bins. For now I'm keeping the 2 and 1.5 inch bins.  Anyway...in previous years of the RSC I would pick a block or blocks to make with scraps from each scrap bin. Now that I've emptied most of my scrap bins I now am working with scrap chunks to make my RSC blocks. I store my scrap chunks by color and define them (roughly) as anything larger or longer  than a 4.5 square and less than a Fat Quarter (FQ).   

So...now that I'm using scrap chunks I cut off whatever I need to make my RSC blocks. Then I decided I would TRY at the very end of the month to use up whatever is left of the "cut off" after I make my blocks rather than store leftover "cut offs" away anywhere or put them back in with the scrap chunks. 

At the end of the month I've been making a variety of different blocks from those "cut offs" for the Parts Department.   

I've been making Nine Patches from the 2.5 inch leftovers or I've been cutting them into squares or I've been cutting them into 2.5 x 3.5 rectangles or I sew anything less than a square into a strip. 

The 3.5 inch leftovers get made into Four Patches for the Parts Department or into squares or 2.5 x 3.5 rectangles or squares or strips. 

 The 2 inch leftovers also get sewn into Four Patches for the Parts Department or cut into squares. 

Rainbow Scrap Challenge ScrapHappy Saturday

Flimsy #1 from the 4.5 Inch Block Bin - Whigmaleerie

 Whigmaleerie

An odd or fanciful contrivance

60 x 84

This is flimsy #1 that came out of a bin of 4.5 inch parts and then some. 

My goal is to bust the 4.5 inch parts bin as I mentioned in a year end post 

It will be fun to see how many quilts come out of this bin. 

 For this first flimsy I decided to use blue and purple parts, orphans and squares cut from the 4.5 inch scrap bin.  Some parts like four patches and four inch HSTs are the result of various swaps over the years. 

 Some parts I made a few years ago while sorting through crumbs. I found a lot of waste triangles thrown in there so made little four inch pinwheels...

 ...and other four inch triangle blocks. 

 I didn't put anything on a design wall or floor. I first made some eight inch blocks like the Broken Dishes or Double Four Patches from the parts. Then I made some twelve and some twenty four inch blocks from the parts and I also made some blocks 3 x 6. 

 So I just kept sewing pieces and parts together until I had a nice sized comfort quilt top. 

It's always fun to see a quilt I've made like that when I go hang it on the clothesline and see the whole thing from a distance. 

On to the next...

Finished or Not Finished Friday at Alycia Quilts

It's a Flimsy! Coddiwomple

 It's a flimsy! 

Coddiwomple

64 x 82

 This is made from Orphan Blocks and some HSTs from the Parts Department.   A while ago I saw Claire (Cspoonquilt) and Cynthia (Quilting is More Fun Than Housework)  playing with orphan blocks and having some fun and that inspired me to dig into my Orphanage. I pulled out a bunch of blocks with black backgrounds and started playing with eight Stripey??  orphans leftover from a quilt finished...

...October 2010 and made from swapped blocks. 

Aiming for a twin sized quilt I first made four more 7 inch (finished) Stripey?? blocks so I could play with twelve blocks and make a rectangular quilt. Then I started to Coddiwomple (or “to travel in a purposeful manner towards a vague destination”).  I have to thank a couple of blog readers, Sandy (Sew High) and Nann (With Strings Attached) for some of the fun words they send me for possible quilt names. Sandy sent me the word Coddiwomple and I think it was perfect for this quilt. 

 The next thing I did was add borders around the Stripey?? blocks. I dug into my 1.5 inch scrap bin and pulled the longest pieces I found and added borders all around log cabin style. When I ran out of 1.5 inch scraps  I cut more from scrap chunks. I wanted to keep the bordered blocks an even size so I could add 2 inch (finished) HSTs as sashing so ended up bordering each orphan with four 1.5 inch strips and one 1 inch strip for a 16 inch (finished) block. 

I had some HSTs in the Parts Department but not nearly enough for all the sashing so I made lots more with scraps from my 2.5 inch scrap bin.  I didn't bother with orienting the HSTs any particular way but just sewed them together willy nilly and then sewed all the columns and rows together.  The quilt was then 56 x 74 and a wee bit smaller than what I wanted so I added a border of batiks and black.  I almost used up all the solid black in my stash. 

 And then I arrived at my vague destination...

Coddiwomple

This was the pile of orphans with black background I pulled so I think I have more Coddiwompling to do maybe after I replenish my black solids and BOBs (blacks on blacks).  Wonder how many more quilts will come out of that pile of orphans.  I think maybe two or three. Stay tuned! 

Peacock Party at Wendy's Quilts and More

Finished or Not Finished Friday at Alycia's Quilts