Wrangling the Blues

It's Saturday, and that means it's time to talk about Rainbow Scrap progress!

Angela posted two blocks this week for the Rainbow Sampler:  Tic Tac Toe (left) and Monkey Wrench.  Or Churn Dash, the name I usually associate with this block.  Churn Dash is one of my favorite quilt blocks; I could easily get carried away and decide to make an entire Churn Dash rainbow quilt!  I must resist....I must resist...

I have a huge collection of 2" square scraps, so it was a no-brainer to make a 16 patch block.  The 16 patch is a great scrap-buster and building block for a variety of quilts, so I'll keep adding these in all the rainbow colors.

I was inspired to try my first wonky star this week.  There are lots of names for this technique: Liberated Stars (Gwen Marston) or Maverick Starts (Bonnie Hunter), and just as many tutorials.  My star has a crumb-pieced center and I used triangle shaped scraps for the star points.  Everything in this block came from the crumb jar or scrap bin, so I'm a happy camper.  

This will finish as a 9 inch block.  I think I'd be happier with a slightly smaller size block, but I thought the crumb center needed to be at least 3 inches to avoid too many seams and teeny-tiny pieces.  Maybe my next attempt will have a 4 patch center instead of crumbs.

Last but not least, I have been working on marking the sewing lines for the Carpenter's Wheel block.  Even though the pieces for the block are rotary cut, it's necessary to mark the intersecting seam lines to assist in sewing the dreaded "Y" seams.  I want to try to have the block all pieced by next Saturday; then I'll have a better idea of how the whole process will work.

There's lots more blue scrappy goodness to be seen at today's Rainbow Scrap Challenge link up, so I hope you'll check out the inspiration there!

A Little Late....But Finished!

I pulled out this quilt top at the beginning of October, with the goal to get it quilted and bound by Halloween.  Hahaha!

The top started as a creative playtime exercise in using the 4 patch posie technique.  The fabrics were scraps leftover from a baby quilt I made for my niece.  My kaleidoscope blocks were a little limited due to the scraps I had available, and the small repeat design of the fabric.  Still, I had fun with the process!

I finally finished stitching the binding down last week.  Now it will be ready for next Halloween!

I wanted the quilting to reflect the zig-zag pattern of the orange background fabric.  Straight line quilting with my walking foot - nothing fancy.

Quilted diamonds in the borders.

Kinda hard to see, but there are concentric stars inside the blocks.

One of my favorite blocks.

I think I've done enough with the 4 patch posie idea (how about some 4 patch parrots?), now I need to tackle a different kaleidoscope shape!

Distracted

You know those days where you just can't seem to stay focused on one project?  I call it creative distraction.  Or maybe it's just Creative Attention Deficit Disorder!

I started yesterday morning catching up on some blog reading, and was inspired by Amy's Maverick Stars and Angela's comment/suggestion to make the star centers from crumbs.  The little lightbulb in my head started flashin'!  

Off to the sewing room to start some blue crumbs.  

It didn't take me long to feel guilty, though, because I knew I should be working on these lovely circles: 

This is an interesting technique for flower petals.  I need to stitch 27 circles using the green dot fabric.  The circles are then cut in half and turned right side out to make 54 petals.

The petals are the next border on this Mary Engelbreit wallhanging; they'll be stitched on similar to prairie points.  This will be a gift for a dear friend who loves Mary Engelbreit.  I really need to get 'er done - this kit has been hanging around since 2007!

These little distractions have been sitting on the cutting table all week.  I found them hiding in a drawer, and remembered Bonnie Hunter had posted instructions for a spool pin doily.  My brain was saying, "perfect Slow Sunday Stitching project - if only you can find the right size crochet hook - I know there's one around here somewhere!"

And then there were further distractions, although they weren't all that creative:  laundry, groceries, making dinner.  Sunday is family dinner night - our oldest son usually comes for dinner - so that was another distraction.  After dinner we watched "Sherlock" via Netflix using my new Chromecast gadget.  Good distractions, but no sewing or crocheting was accomplished.

Some days you just have to roll with the distractions and take your creative satisfaction where 'ye may!

Rainbow Scrap Challenge Sampler: Off & Running

This year's Rainbow Scrap Challenge has a new feature:  sampler blocks!  Angela, the challenge hostess, has been preparing a series of 6" (finished) sampler blocks to be completed in the monthly rainbow shades.  So far, they haven't been difficult blocks to complete and are a great way to use up a variety of scraps.  I'm a happy camper that I've been able to keep up with this week's blocks!  

Many thanks to Angela for taking the time to put the sampler block instructions together!

Now to head for my quilting chair with my laptop to look at all the other Rainbow Scrap link-ups from today.  I'll be multi-tasking, since the NFL football playoffs will also be on television and I MUST root for my home team!

"Pinspiration": Vinyl Zipper Bags

I've written before about my Pinterest-inspired craft projects.  There's lots of crafty inspiration to be found there - probably more than I'll ever be able to attempt in my lifetime!

Pinspiration struck again when I was visiting my family over the holidays, and I noticed my sister stashed all her cosmetics in generic plastic zipper bags.  She said she didn't see the point in spending money on fancy bags to carry cosmetics, when plastic bags worked just as well.  I thought I could at least make her some custom vinyl zippered bags - and I already had a tutorial pinned to a Pinterest board!

I made a practice bag first to test everything out.  I followed the instructions as written in the tutorial, but added gussets to the bottom of the bag for a little more versatility.  The vinyl came from my local Hancock Fabrics store - I went with a fairly thick vinyl for durability.  The vinyl was about 60" wide, and I bought at least a yard - I'll have enough vinyl to make bags for a long time!

I thought my sister would get a kick out of having custom zipper bags with fabric from her alma mater, so out came the University of Florida scraps.  I used matching regular sewing weight thread for all the seams.  This used a 7" zipper and finished at about 7x6".

This one also has a 7" zipper, but is taller and has deeper gussets.

Some tips for sewing with vinyl:  increase your stitch length up a click or two (sew a test seam to see what stitch length works best).  I used a #14 leather needle, which punched through the vinyl nicely.  If you have a walking foot - use it!  Also, it really helps to put a piece of scotch tape on the bottom of your presser foot.  The tape helps the vinyl feed over the feed dogs more easily.  Above all, don't hurry!  The vinyl is sticky and wants to adhere to itself, so just work slowly and deliberately to avoid problems.  Using tissue paper in between the pieces of vinyl might be helpful, but I didn't want to pick pieces of paper out of my seams!

A handy travel set for my sister!

I need to get some more zippers - I've got plenty of vinyl and plenty of fabric scraps - I can see using these for all kinds of storage!

Feelin' Scrappy: Rainbow Scrap Challenge 2014

Happy Rainbow Scrap Challenge 2014 Saturday!   The RSC is sponsored by Angela of Soscrappy; every Saturday she hosts a link-up for challenge participants to share their projects.  It's a fun challenge that leads to all kinds of creative inspiration and new blogging friendships!  This year, Angela has added two new elements for participants:  a scrappy quilt block sampler and a monthly give-away of hand-dyed fabrics from Vicki Welsh.  Check out today's Soscrappy blog for more information and lots of inspiring scrappy quilting!

In addition to general tidying in my sewing room, I've been doing lots of prep work for scrappy quilt projects I hope to complete this year.  It was a happy coincidence Angela chose blue as this month's RSC color, as I had already planned to make a big dent in my blue scraps (and yardage) with a new leader-ender project.

I'll be making uneven 9 patch blocks and sawtooth stars in an attempt to use up some of my vast hoard stash of blue fabric.  

I recycled some bakery containers to hold the various components of each block.  I'll park these next to the sewing machine and use the components as a leader-ender project.

Since my earliest days as a quilter, I've wanted to make a Carpenter's Wheel quilt.  I decided it was time to tackle that item on my quilting bucket list, and use the RSC as a means to keep me focused.  I figure I should be able to complete one block per month, right?!  I'm using the instructions found at Bloomin' Workshop.  The diamonds are all cut, so now I just need to cut the background fabric (white) and start sewing.  The blocks will finish at 19 inches, so I should have a nice size rainbow quilt at the end of the year.

I also thought I would do some type of 9 patch or 16 patch rainbow blocks again this year, as they are such great building blocks for scrappy quilts.  Then Angela announced she would be sharing tutorials for 6 inch scrappy blocks as part of this year's RSC, and I knew I would have to join in.  I'm looking forward to her block surprises throughout the year - I'm thinking most of the blocks will be fairly quick to complete and therefore instant gratification!

Now I'm off to do a little more sewing before being pulled into NFL football playoff games!

A Rainbow Review

I've been off in Florida, sharing some holiday happiness with my mom & sisters.  It was great to see everyone and enjoy a bit of sunny Florida weather.  They even indulged me and let me poke around a quilt shop while we toured old downtown Winter Garden!

I've returned home to more typical gloomy & chilly December weather.  We're at our camp, but I've got a couple of sewing projects here, so I can blissfully ignore the weather.

Before leaving for Florida, I was able to complete the free-form scrappy border for the 9 patch and snowball Rainbow Scrap Challenge quilt.  The 9 patch blocks were made for the 2012 RSC, and I made the scrappy snowball blocks during 2013.  I just need to stitch the scrappy border to the quilt and add another white outer border and the top will be complete.

I didn't want to do a year in review blog post, but I thought it would be fun to make a collage of all the Rainbow Scrap Challenge houses I made this past year.  I enjoyed looking back at the scrappy fabric and New Orleans houses that inspired all these blocks.  I hope 2014 provides the inspiration to assemble them all into a quilt!

I hope everyone has a festive and safe New Year's Eve and I look forward to sharing more sewing and quilting fun with everyone in the coming year!

Santa's Scrappy House

I couldn't resist making one last happy, scrappy house block for the New Orleans House Project.  

I really must do some serious scrap-busting of Christmas scraps.  I was planning to make a Christmas log cabin quilt for my youngest son, but DH has asked for a red, white and blue log cabin quilt.  I don't think two log cabins in one year is a good plan, so maybe Bonnie Hunter's Strip Twist pattern would make a good Christmas-themed scrap buster!

The design wall was empty earlier this week, so I threw all the Rainbow Scrap Challenge happy, scrappy houses up for a picture.  Unfortunately, I deleted the picture from my camera before saving it.  I currently have 48 rainbow-hued house blocks and several ideas for how to assemble them.  I'd like to see the houses get assembled in 2014, but for now they are marinating while I come up with a plan.

After I took down the house blocks, I put up my green Trip Around the World blocks.  This project is meant to use up some of the vintage, dark green fabric in my stash.  Other shades of green have found their way in as well.  I probably have enough green fabric to make two of these, one in dark greens and one in lime greens.  I need to make another 12 blocks for a decent sized quilt, then I'll decide on whether to mix shades or not.

In preparation for the new year, I've cleaned the cutting table and put away fabric, organized scraps and UFOs.  I won't have much time for sewing in the coming week, but I have been trying to cut some strips and squares cut for 2014 projects.  I'm looking forward to sharing all that soon!

More Rainbow Scrap Wrap-Up

I think the happiest thing I can say about my sewing activity this week is that I've made a big dent in cleaning off my cutting table!  As the year comes to a close, it's always nice to clean up, clear out and get organized for a new year of sewing/quilting fun.  

There are a lot of project ideas running through my head, both newFOs and UFOs, but I have not committed to a plan of attack yet.  At best, I really want to make a trial block to test out my 2014 Rainbow Scrap project.  I'd like to accomplish that in the next week, but I don't know if I'll be able to carve out the time.  I should be out braving the crowds to finish Christmas shopping right now, but the siren call of fabric is keeping me home!

I did finish a chocolate churn dash small quilt top, probably best used as a table runner.  I had hopes of machine quilting this in time to give as a Christmas gift, but that's not going to happen.  It's not as wonky as it looks - I just have a problem holding the camera straight!

Another chocolate table runner, also not finished in time for gift-giving.  Plus, I need to order more of the chocolate bar fabric for the binding (see top right corner).

All three of these table runners were inspired by bonus triangles left-over from another quilt.  I learned a valuable lesson from this exercise - leave the bonus triangles loose (don't sew them into HST blocks) until you've decided how you'll use them.  Most of these bonus triangles were already sewn into blocks before I started the table runners, and I had to rip many of them apart to piece together the fabrics I wanted to use.  

I STILL have enough bonus triangles left to make another Birds in the Air table runner!

While I was piecing all those chocolate blocks together, I used the 9 patch and snowball blocks of this quilt as leader-enders.  Once the blocks were stitched into rows, it was a quick job to assemble the final top.  This is my 4th quilt top from the 2012 Rainbow Scrap Challenge.  I'm going to add a white border to give the blocks a "floating" effect.  I was hoping the light blue fabric being auditioned in the picture would be a good way to finish the quilt, but it's not quite what I had in mind.  I may go with my new favorite border treatment:  Freeform Scrappy Border, followed by another white border.  I also thought about a border of smaller 9 patches set on point, but honestly, I'd like to finish this quilt sooner rather than later!

I was also inspired to make one more Happy Scrappy House block with a Christmas theme, but after choosing my fabrics, I decided they all needed pre-washing to avoid the dreaded running red dye.  I guess stitching that block can be my reward later today for finishing my Christmas shopping!

Today is link-up day for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge, so please visit Angela's blog to see more challenge wrap ups!

Wrapping Up Rainbow Scraps

Time has slipped away from me, as it always does between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  Two family birthdays, celebrations and socializing, shopping and cooking - plus work - it all takes me away from fabric therapy.   I think the last time I spent quality time with my sewing machine was the week before Thanksgiving!

I do have a few Rainbow Scrap Challenge loose ends to tie up before the end of the year, so I'll be posting some random Finished Objects as time permits. 

Once my kids left home, I decided it was time to use cloth napkins at mealtime.  Since it's usually only DH and I at dinner, we re-use our napkins for a week or so before throwing them in the laundry.  I've got a pretty good stash of napkins now, so if guests show up for dinner, there are always plenty of clean ones.  This brown checked fabric got pulled out of the stash for the November Rainbow Scrap Challenge color, and when I saw the date 1988 on the selvedge, I knew it was time to use up as much of the fabric as possible!

DH spotted this dog-themed fabric at Hobby Lobby and asked for some dog napkins.  They kinda go with my china, doncha think?

Napkins are easy sewing and make great gifts.  If you're feeling inclined, a good tutorial can be found here.

I never knew napkin folding could be so much fun - step by step instructions can be found here.