So I’m feeling chatty today! It’s not often that you get two ((or three)) posts out of me in a day, but this is kind of a Sew-Along-Day since many of us are hunkering down and combining Superbowl Sunday as an At-Home-Retreat day as well!
Thanks for the comments on the blehhhh setting of my quilt! It really does help to get other people’s opinions and I know more than ANYTHING that I have to listen to my own inner voice that says “You gotta make it YOUR way!” ((Yeah, this does sound like some kind of Retro-Burger-King jingle!))
In tossing emails back and forth with my friend Mary, I realized that one of the things I wasn’t happy with was that the SCALE of the sashings was off. I was trying to purpose those leader/ender 4 patches which meant I was going to have to cut a 2.5” sashing to go with them. It minimized the blocks!
So back to the drawing board on that.
I found a piece of butter yellow crackle ((Okay, this has been in my stash at least 10 years! Remember when that ice tone-on-tone or whatever it was called came out in ALL colors?!)) and I LOVE the sunshine it brings to the blocks. So many said to go with neutral, but I don’t want all the block corners to completely disappear like they did with the little monkey fabric, so..just a spot of color, but something that reads as solid. Score. It *IS* A baby quilt after all. Though I would have gone with red, I just decided to baby-it-down a bit.
And….I cut it 2” wide instead of 2.5”. What a difference that makes!
So, I’m ditching the leader/ender 4 patches, and instead pulled my box of pre-cut 2” squares and dug in there for colors that would compliment the quilt, AND….threw in some of the requested mint green color. Just a spot of it.
I’m ready to sew the center! And I know I will like it more as the seams take up the extra space and shrink it all up together.
I’ve found border/binding fabrics that will be great, I think….more modern fabrics for a very modern Sis-in-law!
I may have a top to show at Half Time when we draw the winner for the bunged up copy of Scraps & Shirttails II!
Off to the machine~~ Later, Gators – Errrmmm, make that Packers & Steelers!
Bonnie your new layout just sings, perfect!
ReplyDeleteI really like your solution Bonnie! I was hoping you weren't going with red. I like red, but it just didn't seem right to me. The muted yellow is excellent!
ReplyDeleteI can attest to Bonnie's problem with her 1/4" seam on the hot pink Featherweight. She was not happy with her sewing at Shipshewanna. But the blocks were sooooo cute she just kept on sewing. I even have some of her peacock blue in my scrap stash. Remember the picture of me going through the waste baskets? And some had food items in them! Yucky! But we soon fixed that problem!
ReplyDeleteLove the smaller sashings and the yellow crackle. Perhaps you could add the lime green as the binding?
I am so ready to sit down and sew.
XOXOXOXO Subee
I love it. It will be a great baby quilt. You have amazing color sense. I love you blog and took your advice and signed up so I can respond.
ReplyDeleteThanks
Very pretty! I can't wait to see it together! I will be sewing a bit latter hopefully on my RRCB I am still on step 3.
ReplyDeleteThat is beautiful! It looks perfect now. Well done! Dianne B. in England
ReplyDeleteI love it! I'm glad you didn't 'settle' on one of the other layouts. This one is great.
ReplyDeleteI like the changes! Esp. the cornerstones are much better for this quilt now! (I wasn't feeling the 4 patch-cornerstones on this one!)
ReplyDeleteLove it! Can't wait to see a pic of the finished top/quilt!
Great solution Bonnie, as usual. It is really helpful to us all to see your process, so thanks for that.
ReplyDeleteToday I'll be working on what I'm bringing to the workshop in Lexington next weekend. Still need to finish the borders on my Orange Crush - I was waylaid for a bit while making a baby frayed edge quilt, then a larger one for us to keep. I'll also be bringing the BargelloBowl quilt I made along with you 2 or 3 years ago. Oh, and I need to cut out my pieces for the workshop. I've decided on Christmas fabrics with some neutrals for the "background" for the Scrappy Mountains Majesty. It's warm enough here, and sunny, so I think I may have to do the cutting outside!
Hello Bonnie,
ReplyDeletethis will become a very nice quilt (like usual with you *g*) .
xxx from Doris
Love it! That look so much awesomer. I think I just made up a word but it is applicable.
ReplyDeletePerfect! What a difference a half-inch makes!
ReplyDeleteWow, I just posted on the last post that I liked the monkey fabric, but I really like the changes you made! I will be checking in tonight to see a picture of how it is coming! And way to go using up that old crackle!
ReplyDeleteyes I love it this way - good selections.
ReplyDeleteKaren
http://karensquilting.com/blog/
Hi Bonnie!
ReplyDeleteI just love how you share your creative process with us! I always assumed that experienced quilters just opened up their stash and, VOILA, the perfect fabric would practically jump off their shelves. I am excited to share with you my very own blog. http://artisticzoo.blogspot.com Your email instructions and encouragement were a huge help. I think you will recognize the profile pic. I would feel honored if the other quilters on this blog would check it out also. Pictures are coming.....
Happy Sunday!
Sherri ;-)
Bonnie, with your help I am overcoming my addiction to 2 1/2" strips and squares. I am beginning to see the beauty and utility of 2" and 1 1/2" strips and squares. Much less goes into my wastebasket these days!
ReplyDeleteI love the quilt you are working on. 2" is much better. Love the yellow. I have the same fabric in off white and gray. You are right it is about 10 years old. Have a quilty day.
ReplyDeleteWould really like a damaged book to keep company with my other two.
ReplyDeleteRight again, Bonnie! The soft yellow looks so lovely and mellow against the blocks. No one else even suggested that - it's unexpected and fresh. Looking forward to seeing the top all put together. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the thought process. It's interesting and helpful to see how other quilters think something through, and to consider so many possible solutions to the same dilemma.
Much better....and honestly I can now see this quilt in with a mint green baby room. So glad you didn't shoot for the red...then it would have been all about what WE love.
ReplyDeleteIt looks like it's gonna work out great! The little bits of green are really going to work with this one!
ReplyDeleteLooks as if you have your problem solved! It just takes a fresh look to get it to come together sometimes. Love the quilt.
ReplyDeleteI love the sashing now! I think everyone was on the right track with the carpet color (meaning more subtle), but the soft yellow is much better for baby! The single squares and soft color really showcase the cute, colorful blocks.
ReplyDeleteThis is perfect.... Please do show us more at half-time....
ReplyDeleteI just made a quick run to the 'thrift' and got 25 more free shirts!!! I feel sooooooo rich! And the neat thing is that the people that volunteer there are getting into what I am making and put aside some for me!! Back to the machine....
good solution, especially changing the width! That's what it needed. The solid cornerstones work better (imho) too...I hope it's not too late to ask to be in on the book drawing. My RRCB is almost done, just have the pieced border to add & I really love it!
ReplyDeleteI like the butter yellow, Bonnie, it looks nice with all of the colorful blocks and I think reducing the scale of the sashing works too.
ReplyDeleteGail :)
I knew you would work it all out! It looks perfect. Scrappy and happy and baby all at the same time.
ReplyDeleteBonnie, That border fabric is wild, but it's great!
ReplyDeleteI love it! You will probably think this is strange, but it looks like stained glass to me.
ReplyDeleteI love your changes to the quilt, the smaller sashing made a huge difference and I love 'cracked ice'. I used to sell a number of the colors in my store and still have some cream, green and navy blue. I like the light colors the best.
ReplyDeletetesting my blogger id/email address. Had trouble setting it all up. Wow, the things we do to try and win free stuff :-)
ReplyDeletebonnie - i really love the final layout of the baby quilt - it is hard sometimes when you 'just want those fabrics' to play nicely - but you know in your heart that it is not working - i then love the feeling when you know its right!
ReplyDelete