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Saturday, February 17, 2024

What's Next?


Now that Oopsie Daisie is in the comfy chair being bound - there has to be something else in the piecing stage, doesn't there?

So much of what was in the works was set aside late summer so I could get cranking out our Indigo Way mystery - getting that ready for the intro post on Halloween.

From there on it was mostly the craziness of string blocks in between writing mystery clues - and the pattern for Big String Quartet will be coming out next month.

That was my last finish before we revealed Indigo Way and I headed off to New Zealand where hexies were at hand to keep my hands busy on long journeys by plane, train, boat and bus.

So what's with the photo at the top of this post?

I unearthed a project started last year - or was it the year before? I can't remember.  It gets that way with quilting.

Notice that while there are blocks, all of the other cut out pieces are scrambled.  I guess that box had fallen a time or two.


Sorting and clipping happened.

Some of the sets are missing pieces!  I'll see if I have some of those same shirt scraps around to complete them. Or I'll cut new.

I just wanted to settle into some easy block sewing and NOT deal with tiny pieces.


I mean - how hard can these be? NOT!


Until - Oops! 

At least my points matched?

How did that happen?


A quick fix and I was off to the next block.

BTW, that maroon plaid is a piece from one of my Grandpa Mach's shirts. This fabric still connects me to him and that's another reason I love working with scraps.  Scraps have memories.  New fabric off the bolt doesn't have memories - until you've made a quilt from it, and are using the scraps reminding you of that quilt you previously made with it.  Make sense?


The Ladder Star block pattern with Quiltmaker directions is found in my Nov/Dec 2016 Addicted to Scraps column.

When this becomes a finished quilt I'll release the pattern including my Essential Triangle Tool option for those flying geese and half-square triangles, allowing me to get the block out of ONE strip width all the way across the board, making it perfect for my Scrap User's System strips.

Yesterday was also a haircut day, followed my lunch with the B.A.D (Bound and Determined!) Quilters and then off to town to get some paper notarized, and then back to the studio and the quilters - it was quite a runaround day.


What started the day as four columns -


Had grown to 6+ columns while I was out erranding.


Sandcastle block beginnings from String Frenzy) got their sandy string corners added!


Yellow Brick Road baby quilt was being quilted!


More barn quilt blocks on the wall!

Needless to say the quilters were busy and they didn't need me around to encourage them to keep sewing.

This morning? We've had a huge temperature drop and the wind has kicked up. It's currently 26 with a high this afternoon of 29.

I think it's safe to say that no one will be going out for hikes or doing much else other than staying in and staying warm and quilting away all day.

That works for me!

I've sewn up all of the Ladder Star blocks that I had block kits for - so it will be a cutting day for me as I did some design work to figure out how many more blocks I need and what I plan to do with borders.

Oh, and that black/neutral pineapple project?

I'm down to the last 2 quarter-blocks.  That's an at home project I piece on when Hubster Dave is out to cornhole or archery.  I'm thinking I'll have those blocks finished after the weekend and can then lay that out and assemble and figure out if it needs borders or not.

So here we are into the weekend - what's up on deck for you?


The Winter Cardinal PDF pattern release including Star of Hope is going great guns -Thank you, everyone!

If you missed it, click over to my 2/9/24  Post to read all about it and add yourself to the Gift-Away.


Indigo Way is also now available as a PDF pattern booklet!

Both Indigo Way and Winter Cardinal are currently 25% off in the Quiltville Store ONLY. No coupon needed. Sale price good through 2/23/24.  Price reverts back to full on 2/24/24.


Quiltville Quote of the Day -

Your job today is to build yourself up, not tear yourself down!
Have a marvelous weekend, everyone!


 

13 comments:

Patty Potter said...

Sewing with friends today, 5 or 6 of us. Potato bar for lunch, working on my quilted sneakers!

Anonymous said...

You get so much done! You have taught so many of us so much! Thank you. Sandi Z

cityquilter grace said...

always enjoying seeing what the quilvillians are up to!

Anonymous said...

Sewing day for me, heck every day I’m sewing! The birds are returning despite the fact it’s 7 degrees out. Thank you for so many lessons I’ve learned from you.
Sandi Z.

Marcia said...

I'm headed out today to purchase supplies to make 2 kid comfort quilts for two toddlers. Their Air Force dad is being deployed. They will be photo quilts with pics of dad, the family, and dad and each child. Alex Anderson had a guest on her live stream last week talking about quilts they make for children of deployed service members. In this case the dad is stationed at a base that doesn't have a chapter so I decided to make them. I've know this young man since he was a child.

Miss Papa said...

Nice job ladies! I love seeing projects on design walls. Can't wait to see your Ladder Star blocks all spread out, Bonnie.
It's a chilly 16 degrees in Kansas this morning (38 expected high), so I'll be staying in and sewing as well. Happy Saturday to all!

Mary said...

My Challenge Quilts are on the Docket today. I can't put them off any longer. It's almost March. I have a shifting project I started in 2011 that is calling after seeing your blocks. Happy Stitching day.

Anonymous said...

That is very kind of you. God Bless you.

Anonymous said...

Bonnie, I looked and looked and could not see the error in the block, until I saw the corrected photo! Can you tell us anything about the quilt behind your quote of the day? It is darling. I’m fighting a cold and sewing anyway today, just sewing slower.
Fran in Pa

Mary O'Hern said...

I'll be playing with the block setting of Indigo Way. There are many possibilities even though I currently like Bonnie's setting the best. Playing is so much fun! Have a great weekend!

Ginny A said...

I always appreciate your words of encouragement!

Tracey Honig said...

Wow! The retreaters are busy as always! It's the "down" part of the roller coaster weather ride here in South Central Texas. It's cold for the weekend, but during the week it's supposed to warm up to the 80's!! Ugh... It's all or nothing here. We've also been dealing with some small earthquakes as they are doing some heavy fracking down the road from us. (Oilfield talk!) This morning I felt 2 aftershocks. It's crazy. As for the sewing part, I have 5 more blocks to do before I finish my Pineapple quilt. I just ordered some border options... hopefully something will work! Have a wonderful, relaxing, long weekend, everyone!

Diane R said...

When my husband was a bowler I made lots of shirts for him using colorful fabrics like tropical fish, manatees, orange slices, and more. I made about 40 shirts for him. I have since used leftover fabric from those shirts along with scrapes from other projects together in quilts. Memories return with every viewing. I'm especially pleased with a sampler quilt made in a class taken with my niece. Fish became leaves, trees got purple trunks, and polar bears, cats, and a unicorn all got featured in pieced blocks. The memories of sewing together is there in both of our sampler quilts.

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