Wishing Rings - A Finish!

Wishing Rings

It's a finish! 

84 x 91

620 blocks that finish at 3.5 inches.

Inspired by a c. 1825 - 1875 Church Window Hexagon variation quilt. 

I started making blocks back in January 2019. Temecula Quilt Company was having a quilt along. 

I made my blocks a different way than they did at Temecula and they were a Rainbow Scrap Challenge block for me for a couple of years. 

I finished the top back in February 2021.

I quilted it on my DSM. The quilt has a lot of seams in it and I didn't want to cross over all those flippy corners so I decided to quilt it with crazy eights somewhat following the outer ring. I didn't even try to make perfectly spaced eights because I knew that would be impossible for me to do while quilting such a big quilt on my DSM. So I just took it easy, didn't stress about it and the quilting was finished in no time. 

I pieced together a couple of pieces of muslin for the back and the binding was also muslin. A big bed quilt doesn't require anything fancy on back. 

And sew on...

Finished or Not Finished Friday at Alycia Quilts

 

Wishing Rings

Wishing Rings 

It's a flimsy! (Or a top, if you prefer)

84 x 91

The block is also called Church Window Hexagon (variation) according to some information about a vintage quilt (c. 1825-1875) in The Quilters Guild collection. 

I started making these from scraps back in January 2019. I made it a Rainbow Scrap Challenge project and made blocks each month from scraps in the color of the month. 

The blocks finish at 3.5 inches. The center is a 2 inch square and the sides and corners are 1.5 inch pieces. 

It took me a couple of years of scraps to accumulate enough blocks (620 of them) for a nice big quilt in a 24 x 26 layout. I alternated light corner blocks and dark corner blocks but other than that I sewed them together randomly. Gosh, what a lot of seams and nesting corners! I thought I would never get it all sewn together and pressed. 

I just love big quilts made with small blocks and lots of scraps. 

 My February OMG (One Monthly Goal) was to finish at least one quilt top. Here is finish #1. 

Elm Street Quilts One Monthly Goal (OMG)

Scrap Potpourri

Traditional Dove in the Window blocks.  

They finish at 10.5 inches.

I started these a few months ago to use scrap chunks. They will continue into 2021 as a Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) project.  Most of my 2021 RSC blocks will use scrap chunks cut into 3.5 and 2 inch pieces. 

For years and years and years I've organized most of my scraps by width size. Now I'm moving toward storing scraps by color and using scraps as I go in a few units or squares or simple blocks so I won't have many scraps that will need to be organized in the future. This year I have cleaned out my 4.5 and 3. 5 inch bins and have almost emptied the 1.5 inch bin. I'll keep the 2 inch bin for awhile because I'll still be actively working out of it in 2021. Right now I've been working on cleaning out my big box of 2.5 inch scraps. I've been making nine patches, cutting squares, rectangles and making strips with what is left in the 2.5 inch scrap box.   This week I worked on red. 

Last week I mentioned I needed a few more light cornered Wishing Rings that finish at 3.5 inches. They are now finished. I now have 312 light cornered and 312 light cornered Wishing Rings and another set of blocks that can go into the "to be assembled" box. 

My quilt was inspired by this vintage one c. 1825-1875 from the Quilter's Guild Collection.

Rainbow Scrap Challenge ScrapHappy Saturday

 

Cleaning Out The 2.5 Inch Scrap Bin and Then Some

I mentioned last week that now that I have finished up my RSC (Rainbow Scrap Challenge) projects that use 2.5 inch scraps I want to completely empty the bin   This week I worked on cleaning out the yellow and purple scraps.  I made nine patches, cut 2.5 x 3.5 pieces and 2.5 inch squares and...

...anything less than a 2.5 inch square was sewn into strips for a future Chinese Coins quilt. 

Ditto for the purple 2.5 inch scraps. 

In other news I finished up 44 Wishing Rings with light corners. That made my goal of 312 light cornered blocks that finish at 3.5 inches. Thursday I blogged about making 56 Wishing Rings with dark corners. Now after a couple of years of making these as an RSC project I only have 32 dark corner blocks left to make and I'll have meet my goal of 624 blocks. I'm going to TRY to finish those by year end. 

Rainbow Scrap Challenge ScrapHappy Saturday

 

'30s Thursday

This week I made the halfway point on my Little Scrap Baskets and Hollow Nines. Then I ran out of blocks. 

I figured out I needed 36 more Little Scrap Baskets so I made those. Now I just need to make 45 Hollow Nines. First I need to cut 360 little 2 inch squares from various sizes of scraps and that takes a whole lot longer than just cutting up a few 2 inch strips. But I have been trying to work on something each week that uses '30s reproduction scraps so I guess I know what my next task happens to be. 

This week I also made 56 Wishing Rings with "dark" corners. I used more of those '30s reproduction 3.5 inch scraps to make them. 

These Wishing Rings finish at 3.5 inches and I've been making them for a couple of years as a Rainbow Scrap Challenge Project. The sides I've been cutting from 1.5 inch scraps. The 2 inch center and 1.5 inch corners I've been cutting from 3.5 inch scraps. 

Remember last week when I mentioned I still had a bunch of 3.5 inch scraps left after I made 120 Economy blocks with 3.5 inch centers?  Well...here is how I cut the 3.5 inch scrap for those Wishing Ring centers and corners.  I'm left with a tiny bit of waste and I also get extra 1.5 inch squares for the pencil box of 1.5 inch squares I've been using to make PSP20 (Postage Stamp Pandemic 2020) blocks. 

After making those 56 blocks I still have some 3.5 inch scraps leftover but I'm setting them aside for a bit now until I evaluate all the UFOs I have going that use '30s reproduction fabrics. 

 So now that gives me 280 Wishing Rings with dark corners toward my goal of 312. They are made in a variety of scraps and not just '30s reproductions. Only 32 more blocks to go after all these years! I already have 312 with light corners. The light and dark cornered blocks will alternate in the finished quilt. 

Yellow 1.5 Inch Scrap Edition

Double Irish Chains that finish at 9 inches. 

I've been using dark browns for the center chains, light brown/tan/cream for the backgrounds and the Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) color of the month for the chains. 

Plus Postage blocks that finish at 10 inches. 

This is inspired by a Susan Ache pattern I cut from an old magazine. I say "inspired" because the pattern called for strip piecing just two fabrics per block and I am not strip piecing and am using many different 1.5 inch square scraps per block. 

Postage Stamp Pandemic 2020 (PSP20) blocks that finish at 8 inches. 

 Wishing Rings that finish at 3.5 inches. I've been making these from scraps for a couple of years and my goal is 312 each of light corners and dark corners. I think I'm close to 250 of each. Hopefully before year end I'll make my goal. The quilt will alternate light and dark cornered blocks. That old calico in the third row second from the left used to be my kitchen curtains for awhile in the 80s. 

Rainbow Scrap Challenge ScrapHappy Saturday

Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weenies in Red

Red is the Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) color of the month. This week I worked with 1.5 inch scraps and made some PSP20 (Postage Stamp Pandemic 2020) blocks...

...and four Double Irish Chain blocks...

...and 4 Plus Postage blocks...

...and 16 Wishing Rings with light corners. 

Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) ScrapHappy Saturday

 

Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weenies

 

Purple is the Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) color of the month. 

This week I made most of my blocks with 1.5 inch scraps. 

My scraps are getting smaller and smaller and I don't mind. 

I just started these 9 inch (finished) Double Irish Chain blocks a few months ago. I wanted to use the 1.5 inch width scraps left over from making my Clarissa hourglass blocks; a lot of which were creams, tans, taupes, browns. So the backgrounds will all be light browns and the center chain will be dark browns. The other chains will be in the RSC color of the month. 

I started these Plus Postage blocks last year. They are 10 inch finished blocks. They are inspired by a Susan Ache pattern I cut out of an old magazine. 

I started these 8 inch (finished) Postage Stamp Pandemic 2020 (PSP20) blocks a couple of months ago. 

I think I've been making these 3.5 inch (finished) Wishing Ring blocks for a couple of years now. The center is a 2 inch square but the rest of the pieces are 1.5 inch width. I will alternate light and dark corners in the finished quilt. 

Double X and Alternate Snowball Block. 

Inspired by a vintage quilt. 

These blocks finish at four inches. I think I've been making these for a couple of years too.

Rainbow Scrap Challenge ScrapHappy Saturday 

The Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Blues

My scraps are getting smaller and smaller; itsy-er and bitsy-er;  teenier and weenier! 

This week I worked with 1.5 inch scraps mostly in blue since that is the Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) color of the month. 

Last month I started some Double Irish Chain blocks (9 inch finished). Backgrounds will be light browns and center chain will be dark browns. The rest of the chains will be in the color of the month. I'm thinking 100 of these blocks will make a nice big bed quilt so what better way to achieve that goal than make a few each month from scraps. 

I started these Plus Postage blocks (10 inch finished) in December 2019.  Blocks are inspired by an American Patchwork and Quilting 2016 pattern designed by Susan Ache.  I'm thinking about 81 of these will make a nice big quilt. 

I don't have many solids but I did find enough pieces of different blues to make some PSP20 (Postage Stamp Pandemic 2020) blocks (8 inch finished).  Blocks aren't ironed yet. I'll wait until assembly to iron them so I can nest seams. 

I caught PSP20 last month so I've been catching up on blocks with solids in the RSC colors already called if I have the solids. I could only find one lonesome green piece to use but enough orange for three.  I'm not sure what size this quilt will be...maybe twin sized. That might be 80 blocks. 

I've been making Wishing Rings (3.5 inch finished) for a couple of years now. I cut the 1.5 inch sides from 1.5 inch scraps. I think last time we had a blue month I made blocks with blue centers and corners which are cut from 3.5 inch width scraps.  This month I made the blue blocks with light corners. 

I've almost cleared out my 1.5 inch scrap bin which was one of my goals. So from now on most of my 1.5 inch strips will be cut from scrap chunks. 

And finally, the Double X and Snowballs use 1.5 inch scraps. These blocks finish at 4 inches and I've been making these for a couple of years. They are inspired by a vintage quilt. 

Rainbow Scrap Challenge ScrapHappy Saturday

Into The Wild Blue Yonder

The Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) color for July is dark blue. I think we previously used bright and light blues in April. 

Baskets of Flowers

These finish at 9 inches.

I started them last month because I want to use a pile of scrap chunks. I cut a 3.5 inch piece for the HST and a 2 inch strip for the other three basket pieces. I could have used just a 3.5 inch piece to make the baskets but I'm making another block that uses 3.5 and 2 inch pieces so nothing will get wasted and nothing will be left over. 

I'll make the baskets out of the RSC color of the month and use scraps from the 2 inch width bin for the "flowers".  I found a teeny tiny picture of these baskets in a Google search for "flower basket quilt block" but I was warned by my antivirus program not to click any further.  Unable to find any more information about the block I figured out how to make it myself. I'll set these on point and I'm aiming for a  twin sized quilt. 

I'm using some neutral scraps for the backgrounds.  I didn't have enough of the polka dot for three blocks so substituted a few bees. During the block assembly process I grabbed a few of the wrong pieces so some of the backgrounds are a little mixed up within some blocks. I think that will be okay since the backgrounds are scrappy anyway plus I don't really like to rip. 

Hey, wait a minute! Something is wrong with this picture. I thought I made seven blocks. 

(I later found it mixed in with another WIP of partially completed blocks. So this one gets its own photo.)

Then with some of those same 3.5 and 2 inch scraps I used to make baskets I made some Buckeye Beauties that finish at six inches.  I started these last month too. 

I started those Buckeye Beauties because they will use some of the same 3.5 and 2.5 inch scraps as the baskets and I'll also use some shirt pieces as well as some red and black chunks.  I had three bags (yes, sir, yes, sir, three bags full) like the one shown here full of shirt scraps left over from making a couple of other quilts. I've been going through those scraps and I've been cutting squares or 1.5 inch strips or 2.5 x 3.5 pieces for some other quilts. Two bags down and one to go!! 

I also made a few dark cornered Wishing Rings. I have been making these for a couple of years. They finish at 3.5 inches. I want 312 of these blocks with dark corners and 312 with light corners and have over 200 of each so I'm hoping this is the year I make my goal.   I have been cutting the center and four corners from 3.5 inch scraps. I cut a 2 inch piece and two 1.5 inch pieces. Then I cut 1.5 inches off of the 2 inch piece and square it up. The 2 inch piece is the center of the Wishing Ring and the 1.5 square goes into the postage stamp scrap box. Then I cut the two 1.5 inch pieces into four 1.5 inch squares for the four corners. I then have very little waste from a 3.5 inch scrap.   The sides of the Wishing Rings are cut from 1.5 inch scraps. 

So, as you can see I got three different blocks from each 3.5 scrap and two of those blocks used the 2 inch scrap. 

Then this is what happened to the rest of the original 3.5 inch scrap. I have some HSTs for the Parts Dept. because when I cut my HST for the basket I used an Easy Angle Ruler and cut two HST parts rather than leave a slanted cut on my scrap.  I then cut off a 2.5 x 3.5 piece to go into a bag of pieces that size I'm saving for a quilt. I am aiming for 800-2.5 x 3.5 pieces and as of today I have 400.  Then I cut the rest of the scrap into 3.5 inch squares for who knows what.  I'm just trying to turn almost all my scraps into squares now.  And if there was not enough for a square it was sewn into a strip. I have a box of those strips in various widths and colors now and at year end I'll make a Chinese Coins quilt. 

Rainbow Scrap Challenge ScrapHappy Saturday