Rainbow Scraps Transformed

The happy result of playing along with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge every month is having a pile of colorful blocks to assemble into a quilt at the end of the year.  Sometimes it takes a little more than a year to finish up the quilt(s), but it's still a fun process.

Inspired by all the colorful houses in New Orleans, I started making Bonnie Hunter's Happy Scrappy House blocks in 2013.  It took some time to get these assembled because I kept changing my mind on what the final quilt should look like.  I thought I wanted to applique some words in the outer borders, but after experimenting, it just wasn't working out.  Eventually, I decided it was time to stop dithering and finish this quilt top!

For 2015's Rainbow Scrap Challenge, I used reproduction fabric scraps to make a Scrap Jar Stars quilt.  I finished hand-stitching the binding on this quilt recently and recruited my son to hold it up for photography.  Compared with an earlier Scrap Jar Stars quilt in bright colors, I love the softer, more subdued look of this quilt.

My local long-arm quilter, Cindy Braiwick, did a great job on the quilting design.   She used a multi-color thread that really added some pop to the background fabric.  I'd love to keep this for myself, but I planned it to be a gift it from the beginning, so off it goes!

There are still several more unfinished Rainbow Scrap Challenge projects in my UFO pile, but the year isn't over yet, so they may get transformed, too!

Check out more Rainbow Scrap transformations at the weekly scrappy link-up!

July: 17ufosin2017

The end of July means it's time for another 17ufosin2017 report.

I missed reporting on my UFO projects at the end of June, but my July report will be identical to what I would've reported in June!

One of my most ambitious projects for 17ufosin2017 was to assemble all these Sawtooth Star and Uneven 9-Patch blocks.  I got that accomplished, only to realize the quilt was not going to be the size I expected.  What can I say, sometimes long-term projects play tricks on your memory!

I did not have the willpower to make another big batch of stars and 9-patches, so I decided to add a border of Flying Geese to help reach my desired size.  I made about 90 of these FG blocks, so now they need to be pieced together and attached.  I'll finish this quilt eventually!

Another 17ufosin2017 project is to get the binding on this Scrap Jar Star quilt.  I did get the binding made and machine-stitched to the front, but I still need to do the hand-stitching part.  I confess I have a mental block against stitching bindings down in the summertime.  My house is air conditioned, so I really can't say it's too hot to have a quilt on my lap.  Maybe it's the lack of appropriate television programming in the summer?  (i.e. I get lots of quilt binding done during American football season!)

I've also made some progress on the Nae Shawl over the past two months.  This one is kind of tedious, because it's mostly stockinette stitch and only gets decreased one stitch per round (front and back).  I'm down to about 40 stitches, so the rounds go quickly.  Once it's bound off I'll have to find a place to block it where the cat and dogs won't pester it.

I'm looking forward to seeing what progress others have made on their 17ufosin2017.  Check out the link-up at Meredithe's blog to see what's being worked on!

Spools & Binding & Scrap Jar Stars

I'm sure by now most of you are sick of hearing me talk about The Bind-A-Thon.  I'm kind of sick of it, too, but I persevere!  The T-Shirt quilt is almost finished - one long side to complete - and then I can start binding the next quilt in the pile. 

 

I did take a little break from binding this week to make some Spool blocks.  I pulled strips from my 1 1/2" strip bin and got the components cut early in the week.

 

It didn't take much time at all to stitch up the blocks using speed piecing.

 

Now I have an even 300 blocks for my RSC Spoolin' Around quilt top.  I don't know when I'll actually get around to piecing all the blocks together, but they're ready and waiting. 

 

I actually finished this Bind-A-Thon entry a week or so ago, but didn't have an opportunity for photography until today.  

 I started making the 16-patch blocks for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge quilt sometime in 2014.  The 16-patches morphed into Scrap Jar Star blocks, and the entire quilt was finally finished this year.   

I really enjoyed this pattern - what a fun way to use up lots of scrappy parts and pieces!  My only regret was that I ran out of the background fabric (I was working from my stash) and didn't have enough to add a final, outer border.  It would've stabilized the edges of the quilt and added a little extra width & length.  

 

As usual, my LAQ Cindy Braiwick, did a fantastic job with the quilting!  I suggested something with circles, and this is what she came up with.  The heart-shaped flowers line up with the 16-patch blocks and the circles fall into line in the sashing and cornerstones.

 

It's difficult to see the binding, but the fabric looks like it has water droplets on it.  I've washed and dried it so it's nice and soft, but even with color catchers, I see a little bit of red bled through from one of the red scraps on the front.  This is going to my mom - she has several quilts I've made for her, but all of them are hanging on the wall.  I wanted to give her something she could wrap up in and think of me! 

I'm writing this on Friday, anticipating lots of activity tomorrow - the RSC link-up AND Christmas Eve!  Wishing everyone happiness and plenty of time with family and friends as we all enjoy this special time of year!

 

 

More Scrappy Stars...and a Scrap Jar Finish

I'm blaming it on July and hot summer weather.  My brain has been in Finish It! mode for the past few weeks, so I've been focused on trying to complete some projects.  Maybe so I can feel less guilt over starting some new quilty projects when cooler fall weather starts to appear?

 

First, some Sawtooth Star blocks.  I use these blocks as leader-enders and always keep a stack of component parts near the sewing machine.  Because I've had Finish It-itis, I went ahead and prepped all the components for additional RSC hues we haven't used yet this year.  I may have even made up more STS in those colors, but they're not ready to make their debut yet.

 

All of this month's pink Sawtooth Star blocks.  I still have plenty of pink scraps if I decide I need more pink stars!

 

I counted up all the scrappy stars I've made so far.  I'm just shy of 100 blocks, so by the time we finish all the RSC colors for the year, I will have lots of STS blocks to put to use.   

 

The Scrap Jar Stars also received the Finish It! treatment.   I worked out the final arrangement for the stars and cornerstones, then spent most of last weekend sewing everything together.  Instead of sewing the blocks in rows, I tried sewing them in sections.  This approach made the quilt a little easier to handle, at least until stitching the final sections together.  I think it also helped cut down on the fraying and loose threads that needed trimming when all the piecing was done.  

 

It's hard to get the colors to really show up, at least with indoor lighting.  I look forward to taking some outdoor shots when the quilting and binding are finished. 

If you need more pink scraps, there's more inspiration to be found at the Rainbow Scrap Challenge link-up today. 

 

 

More Scrappy Stars...with a Finish in Sight!

There was plenty of scrappy stitching this week, but the color pink (the Rainbow Scrap Challenge color for July) was only a minor player.

 

I keep making these 4" Sawtooth Stars in each month's RSC color.  These scraps came from the 2 1/2" scrap bin, and once I have the pieces cut, I sew them as Leader-Enders.  I've almost completed a full cycle of colors, so these may be the next project to get turned into a quilt.

 

As I mentioned with last week's Scrap Jar Star block, I was feeling inclined to get the piecing finished on this particular quilt.

 

So I dug through my repro scraps and came up with parts and pieces to make red and gold SJS blocks.  

 

The completed blocks are now pinned on the design wall, although this is not the final configuration.  I've already cut a stack of scrappy cornerstones, so once I cut the sashing I'll be able to assemble all the blocks.  If I can keep from being distracted by other projects, I might even finish the flimsy by the end of July! 

Since I didn't do much scrappy pink stitching this week, I'll be getting my pink fix by checking out the other RSC projects in this week's linky party.

 

Old-Fashioned Pink Stars

 

This week's Rainbow Scrap project was to make a Scrap Jar Star using reproduction-style pink fabrics.  I ran out of the original background fabric for these stars, so this block has a replacement fabric. 

 

That makes 3 repro pink Scrap Jar Stars.  My plan for this SJS quilt is 25 blocks.  I've got 23 blocks - I just need one more gold block and one more red block.  Maybe I should just go ahead and make them without waiting for the RSC color month.  Then I might get the quilt top assembled before the end of the year!

It's Rainbow Scrap Saturday, so check out more scrappy pink inspiration over at Angela's Soscrappy blog.

Scrappy Red, White & Blue

Since I had an unexpected all-day sew-a-thon on Saturday due to rainy weather, one project that got some attention was a scrappy red, white & blue Scrap Jar Star quilt.  I started cutting up scraps and piecing the 16-patch centers last July, but the project got stalled after I pieced a huge batch of HSTs to form the Sawtooth Star portion of the block.

For past SJS blocks, I made totally scrappy stars, pairing fabrics for the star points, but using different fabrics for each set of points.  To my dismay, that really didn't work with all the RWB prints.  The resulting stars were just way too busy and jarring to look at.

Since I already had a huge pile of HSTs made, I decided to make the star points match on each block in an effort to tone down the craziness.  I also decided to use consistent fabrics for the corner squares in each block.

 

I'm happier with the result, but it's still on the busy side.  The 16-patch centers don't look like they belong.  I'm not crazy about the center fabric for the secondary 9-patch where the block corners meet, either.  That will probably be easy to fix.  I'm not sure about the SJS blocks themselves.  I'm going to leave them pinned to the design wall for now and see if they grow on me.  Since I only have 4 blocks pieced so far, I figure it would be easy to swap out the 16-patch centers with a simpler block (pinwheel?) and go from there.

Any thoughts or ideas cheerfully accepted!

Time for Green Scrap Jar Stars

I made Scrap Jar Star blocks in reproduction fabrics for last year's Rainbow Scrap Challenge.  At the end of the year I decided I didn't have enough blocks for a good sized quilt and planned to make more SJS blocks in 2016.  I've been adding a block whenever the RSC features I color I need for the quilt. 

 

I definitely needed another green block, so the green reproduction scraps came out to play this week.

 

I pulled out last year's green SJS blocks so I could admire them all together!

I only need 3 more Scrap Jar Star blocks to meet my goal: red, pink & gold.  It will be good to finally finish all the blocks for this quilt!

I'm thinking I need some new Rainbow Scrap inspiration - a new block or plan to use up more reproduction scraps.  Maybe I'll find The Very Thing at the RSC link-up today.

 

Scrap Jar Stars Visit Cheddar

One of my ongoing Rainbow Scrap Challenge projects has been a Scrap Jar Stars quilt using reproduction fabrics.  I made two blocks in most of last year's RSC colors, but decided I needed a few more blocks before the quilt was a good size.  This year I'm making those extra blocks when the appropriate RSC color comes around.

 

This month's RSC color of orange translates nicely to the color cheddar in reproduction fabrics.  

 

Since the design wall was empty, I pinned up all the repro SJS blocks to date.  There will be sashing between all the blocks, along with cornerstones to make 9-patch style blocks in each corner.  I'll be making 4 additional blocks as the year goes on: red, pink, gold and green.  My only frustration is that I'm about to run out of my ivory-colored background fabric.  I started with a fairly vintage fabric from my stash, so I have no idea if something similar is still available.  I need to check with my LQS and see if they have anything that comes close to my original fabric.

If you are looking for lots more Rainbow Scrap inspiration, stop by the RSC link up at Angela's Soscrappy blog.

Where Have All The Purples Gone?

Yay!  This month's color for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge is purple!  Purple is my favorite color and I love incorporating it into my quilts.  Good thing I have a decent stash of purple fabric and scraps though, because purple is definitely not a color currently in favor with fabric designers.  I try to add new purple fabrics to my stash on a regular basis, but the pickings are slim.  Purple-themed batiks and blenders are fairly common, but prints are more scarce.  Purple does show up as a combo with orange and lime green in some Halloween prints.  And it shows up in some floral prints - think irises and pansies.  I'll just keep watching and collecting - there are great purple fabrics out there if you look!

 

A quick dig through the 2.5" scrap box produced enough centers for some white 9 patch variation blocks.  I added them to the purple 9 patch variation blocks from last year's RSC and moved that project along.  

 

Some scraps from the reproduction fabric scrap box got this Scrap Jar Star going, but I had to make a few new scraps to finish it.   

 

I added it to last year's Scrap Jar Stars and now that project is a little closer to completion, too. 

I'm looking forward to seeing everyone's purple scraps at this week's Rainbow Scrap Challenge link-up.  There will be lots of inspiration, I'm sure!

 

Blue Scraps on a Gray Day

Although we've not had much really cold weather this winter, we've still had way too many gray, overcast and foggy days.  Too much gloomy weather can have a dismal effect on one's state of mind, so it's good to have quilty projects on hand for therapy.  I sewed after work yesterday until way past my bedtime and plan to spend most of today engaged in the same activity - a big dose of Vitamin Q!

 

Making some Sugar Bowl blocks in Kaffe Fassett fabrics was my first project.  I started making Sugar Bowl blocks last year, using essentially solid-color fabrics.  I decided I needed more blocks and wanted to use some bright, vibrant prints.  

 

So far, I'm pleased with how the blocks blend with their plain blue counterparts.  I doubt I will color-block the Sugar Bowls in the final quilt, but it's fun to at least look at them together for now.

 

The multi-fabric 9-patch blocks are from last year's RSC.  After playing with last year's blocks on the design wall, I decided more blocks were needed.  A quick dig through the 2 1/2" scrap bin gave me enough blue centers, and it only took a few minutes to cut enough white scraps to complete the blocks.  Again, I doubt I'll use a color-block layout in the final quilt, but it's fun to play!

 

These red, white and blue 16-patch blocks have been a leader-ender project since last July.  They will be the center sections for more Scrap Jar Stars.  I finally finished all the centers, so I'll need to cut some HSTs to turn these into stars.  I did the math on how many HSTs I need:  200 of them!!  Not sure how I will fit all that cutting into my plans; maybe it's time to buy an Accuquilt cutter! 

My coffee cup is empty, so that means it's time to get to work.  I'm linking up with the other Rainbow Scrappers over at Angela's Soscrappy blog - I'm looking forward to seeing everyone else's blue scrappiness on this gray day!

 

 

 

RSC 15: Counting Up the Scrap Jar Stars

I've been making Scrap Jar Star blocks as part of this year's Rainbow Scrap Challenge.  I made a SJS quilt for last year's challenge using bright colors, so this year I decided to try using reproduction fabrics.  The RSC color for this month is lime green, not exactly a reproduction style color, so I substituted blue-green shades.

 

My design wall is still covered with t-shirt quilt blocks, so I laid all the Scrap Jar Stars on the floor.  Based on experience with last year's quilt, I knew I wanted to have a 5 x 5 block layout so the final quilt would be a decent size.

 

I've got 19 blocks, so I need to make 6 more blocks before I can start assembling.  I don't know if I'll have time to make the blocks during December, so I may carry the SJS blocks over to next year's RSC.

Other RSC quilters are working with lime green or otherwise finishing up their Rainbow Scrap Challenge projects and you can see all their results over at Angela's Soscrappy blog.

 

RSC 15: Variations on 2 Inch Squares

Two inch squares and strips are great building blocks for scrappy quilts.  I have a box full of 2 inch parts that I use as a starting point for all kinds of scrappy projects, including RSC quilts.  I did some digging in the 2 inch scrap box last week to start a 4-patch mini quilt.  I was able to finish that up this week with a variety of 2 inch squares and strips in orange, brown and cream fabrics.  I even found a perfect border fabric in my stash - I just need to cut the borders and attach them.

 

I also went digging in the brown 2 inch squares to assemble 2 Scrap Jar Star blocks.  These came from my burgeoning supply of reproduction scraps.

I'll be digging in my scrap boxes looking for more brown RSC inspiration, as the month is only half over.   In the meantime, check out Angela's Soscrappy blog for more Rainbow Scrap ideas.

RSC 15: Another Take On Scrap Jar Stars

Thanks for all the lovely comments on my Scrap Jar Stars quilt last week!  I'm a big fan of this scrap-busting pattern, and I usually always provide a link back to my inspiration source when I show my SJSs.  I omitted the link last week but since I received so many comments, I just wanted to remind everyone the pattern was created by Amber Johnson who blogs at A Little Bit Biased aka Gigi's Thimble.  You can find her Scrap Jar Star tutorial here.

 

Since I already made one Scrap Jar Star in bright rainbow fabrics, I decided to make another one using reproduction fabrics.  I used lots of wonderful cheddar scraps for this week's Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks.  

 

I also stitched up some Sawtooth Stars (4" variety) as Leader-Enders for the Scrap Jar Stars.  

 

I think this kitten must be a graduate of Kitten U! 

For more orange scrappiness, be sure to visit Angela's Soscrappy blog.

 

 

RSC 15: Never Tired of Nine Patches

It was great to celebrate Labor Day with a 3-day weekend, but the following 4 workdays seemed even longer and more stressful than usual!  I was more than happy when Friday afternoon rolled around, even if it was stormy & rainy.  We are anticipating the first wave of cooler weather here in the Gulf South, and the weather forecasters are saying temps will be in the 50s tomorrow morning here at the camp.  Porch-sitting weather, for sure!

 

Despite my orange block prep of the previous week, only 9 patch blocks were finished this week.  Even though they are simple and humble, I never get tired of 9 patch blocks.  In fact, I have an entire Evernote notebook devoted to 9 patch quilt variations.  I already have 2 or 3 new 9 patch quilts designed in my head! 

 

Even though I mentioned working on my Happy, Scrappy House blocks during September, I knew I needed to add a finishing touch to these Scrap Jar Stars first.  When I finished the initial block and border assembly on the quilt top, I thought it was too small.  I wanted to add a border to increase the quilt's size, but I didn't have enough of the multi-color dotted background fabric to create a larger border.  I experimented with quite a few different fabrics, but nothing looked right.  After some consideration, I decided the quilt would never be used on a bed, so the smaller size wasn't as important as I was making it out to be.  I had just enough of the dotted fabric to make a final, narrow border that completed the 9 patch block secondary effect.  The final size is about 59" x 72".

We are having friends over for dinner tonight, but thankfully the menfolks will be doing most of the cooking.  I just need to clean the house and set the table.  I will be enjoying my sewing vicariously today via the Rainbow Scrap link-up!

RSC 15: Indigo Scrap Jar Star

 

Since this month's color for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge is Indigo - I made an Indigo Scrap Jar Star from reproduction fabrics.  The SJS completely changes personality when placed on the diagonal, eh?

I have lots of new reproduction fabric scraps because I've been participating in Barbara Brackman's Stars in a Time Warp BOW.   The fabric history lessons are fascinating and have given me a lot of insight into fabrics both old and new.  

Not to mention the growing stack of stars that will eventually become a quilt!

More scrappy, colorful inspiration can be found at the Rainbow Scrap Challenge link-up at Angela's Soscrappy blog.

RSC 15: Taming the Scraps in Red, White & Blue

I already finished my red scrappy projects for the month, so this week I went digging through the drawers and baskets full of WIPs, looking for a red project that needed attention.  I found a large collection of red, white and blue scraps that had been languishing since I made a Twister quilt several years ago.  I've been wanting to make a RWB Scrap Jar Star quilt, so I spent some time today taming scraps and getting ready for another SJS project.

 

These scrappy left-overs from a Twister quilt have bias edges on the outside, so I had to do some fancy slicing and dicing to get strips and squares on the straight of grain. 

 

I cut 2" squares in the RWB fabrics plus white, so I can get started on the 16 patch centers of the Scrap Jar Stars.  I also wound up with a stack of 1.5" strips and squares that will find their way into another project some day.  As you can see, I've still got a lot of RWB scraps, plus some untouched fat quarters.  I should be able to complete the quilt top using just scraps, but I'll hang on to the FQs just in case! 

I haven't had time yet to look at all the other scrappy stitching taking place at Angela's Soscrappy blog today.  I believe I will make myself a large glass of sweet tea and go see what all the other RSC quilters have been up to this week!