Broken Dishes and Pinwheels

I actually have quite a few brown scraps. This week I dug into the 3.5 inch scrap bin and made some HSTs for Broken Dishes...

...and Pinwheels.  Next week I hope to dig into the brown crumbs, strings and 2.5 inch scraps. 

To see what others are doing with their brown scraps for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge this Scrap Happy Saturday check out the linky party at SoScrappy. 

Nifty Thrifties

I have finally finished another UFO.  

72x84

Thrifty Blocks

We swapped these blocks with ladies of a Yahoo Group that no longer exists. We swapped blocks in a different color each month during 2009 after the block pattern came out in March 2009. 

The blocks have been sitting in a bin for years.  I have almost enough pink blocks for another quilt this size. 

No fancy quilting on this one. I just sewed on the diagonal through the black squares. I didn't notice while sewing the blocks together that a few of them have the black squares in the corner oriented the wrong way. I only noticed while quilting and left them that way.  I think the purpose of a quilt is to keep someone warm and pieces going the wrong direction won't change that. 

The backing fabric I wanted to use wasn't large enough so I used some swapped violet blocks. If  I use more of the violet blocks in another quilt then I won't have anything left in the violet block UFO bin and that's fine with me.  I swapped the violet blocks with ladies of the Block_swappers Yahoo group and the pattern is another one of Sophie's Block Lotto blocks. 

I think the violets go well with the background fabric. 

And it feels good to have another UFO finished! 

Whooping it up at Confessions of a Fabric Addict 

and linking up to Finish it Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts. 

This was also my November goal for Lovely Year of Finishes. And it is indeed a Lovely Finish. 

Only Four Blocks Left !

I've completed two blocks this month for my Crazy Cravings lap quilt. It's my Crazy Quilt Journal Project WIP for 2013.  I want 20 blocks and now have 16 completed. Blocks are 12 inches and will finish at 11.5.  I should have cut the foundations at 12.5 but didn't so that's why the odd size. 

Each block has some sweet embroidery.

Blanket stitches and french knots and ribbon and french knots stitched with two strands of DMC. 

A seam decorated with variegated brown perle #8.

A seam in herringbone stitch and detached chains stitched in variegated metallic thread and a seam embellished with feather stitch/detached chain/pistil stitches. 

A perle #8 brown flower and a perle #8 seam in straight stitches. 

November block #2

The embroidered motif. 

Gingham ribbon attached with cross stitches and a herringbone seam stitched with one strand (or was it 2?) of DMC and one strand of metallic thread. 

I think the basic seam is up and down buttonhole stitch and I added lazy daisy stitches. 

And finally...some trim tacked down with some straight stitches in each loop. 

The First Time...

...I've tried a Kaleidoscope block. 

I've seen a lot of them in blog land over the years and have always wanted to try them but they looked pretty complicated to me. Then I found out there's a kaleidoscope ruler. I bought one with a 40% off coupon. The blocks are easier to make than I thought. I used 1.5 inch scraps in blue and brown for the kaleidoscope and blue and brown crumbs for the corners.  Block will finish at 12 inches.  I figured the crumbs in the corners would look kind of like all those little pieces that move around in the kaleidoscope until they assemble into  a beautiful image. 

The first time I've tried cutting and using bias strips. 

I normally stay away from anything to do with the word "bias".  But this month's Block Lotto block required it. And even though we are not required to make any blocks for Block Lotto I did. I've been craving some challenges lately.  I had to sew the bias handle on by hand since I really don't see well enough to sew it down on each side by machine.  I hope to get a few more made before the end of the month but this is a busy month. 

I'll be on the road tomorrow. It's a ten hour trip to my brother's house. We are having a little reunion to welcome home my nephew from Germany where he's been stationed for a couple of years.  I've prepped some Grandma's Butterflies to take along for handwork and downloaded a couple of books to my Kindle. I'll be back late Monday. 

Slow Stitching Sunday

I've appliqued all 7 of my butterflies I made last week to my quilt.   I then made a bullion knot  (with between 15-30 wraps depending upon the butterfly) for the body.  The antennae are pistil stitches. I used 1 strand of #8 black perle and 2 strands of DMC glow in the dark embroidery floss.  The entire quilt is quilted in glow in the dark threads (more on that in another post later on) so I think the butterflies needed a bit of glow too.  Now I need to finish sewing that purple spider and web binding down around the 59x63 quilt and I'll be ready to show off my challenge project in more detail. So...I'm about ready to sit and relax and stitch down that binding. 

And if there's more time left before bedtime after that then I'll work some more on my CQJP 2013 Project - my Crazy Cravings lap quilt.  

The way things are going in this crazy world all of the foods in my quilt might well be banned in my descendants life times.   

Registration is open for Crazy Quilt Journal Project 2014 in case you are interested. I already know what my project will be! 

If you are doing some slow stitching this Sunday or want to see some awesome slow stitching projects visit Kathy's Quilts Slow Stitching Sunday. 

What Can Brown Do For You?

Butterflies

Spools

Finally! After two days with more hours asleep than awake and more liquids leaving the body than entering I was able to get up and sew a little this morning.  Thank goodness. I'm rarely sick but when I am it seems to hit hard.  Those darned grandkids must have left me a few cooties after their visit last weekend. 

Anyway...brown is the Rainbow Scrap Challenge color of the month.  I made some 3 inch butterfly and 3 inch spool blocks from my brown scraps.   It's the same block...just different color placement.  That about uses up my 1.5 inch scraps.  But I have lots of brown crumbs and brown 2.5 inch scraps that I need to get used up. That won't be next week because I'm going to be visiting my brother who leaves near Nashville.  His son, my nephew, and family will be returning home from Germany where he has been stationed for several years.  A lot of family will be there to welcome them home.  It's a 9 hour trip so I need to round up 18 hours worth of hand work and/or books to read. 

For some brown scrap inspiration visit Scrap Happy Saturday at SoScrappy.   You will definitely see some things that brown can do for you! 

November Goal - A Lovely Year of Finishes

Just a quick post in order to document my November goal for A Lovely Year of Finishes. 

I want to get this really old UFO quilted and bound by the end of November. It's too dark here now after work to hang it on the clothesline outside in order to get a good picture so this inside shot of a wadded up quilt top on the chair will have to do.   The flowered fabric on the right hand side is the backing for my rainbow scrappy quilt (but there's more to the backing than meets the eye or the picture).  More details later when it's finished! 

So far I've completed all my monthly goals for Lovely Year of Finishes! Have you???