Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Mystery WIP Wednesday

I "sort of" had a day off yesterday -- both my "deadline" quilts were in limbo.  My 100 Blocks sample quilt was waiting for some Moda Bella Solids to arrive at Ruth's Stitchery, and my Scrap Squad quilt was at the quilter's.  So I pulled out this mystery quilt from last year.

I've already made this quilt once, in batiks.  But when I saw Betty's quilt in reproduction fabrics, I just had to make it again.  I had the blocks complete, so I thought I would be able to finish it before today's Block Party. Here is where I was when I went to bed last night:


I should be able to sew twenty blocks together before noon, right?

Except I forgot the sashing had starred cornerstones:


This is where I was when I had to leave for my quilt group:

There is one more border, into which the stars extend.  I will wait until the blocks are all sewn together before deciding what fabric to use, or if I should make it scrappy.  Ohmigoodness, I see a piecing mistake in the top row, second block from the left!  And now I see another mistake on the second row!  That's what I get for sewing at night --glad I don't have the block sewn together yet!

Here is the same quilt made from just three (maybe four) fabrics.  Really looks different, doesn't it?


Linking up to the new WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.

Is there a WIP on your design wall this week?

From the desk of your auntmartisignature

Monday, February 11, 2013

Design Wall Monday

I've finished piecing my February UFO.  It's a Buck-a-Block project using Thangles triangle paper.  This quilt is Series #3 from 2006 -- more proof that fabric doesn't go bad with time!  I don't know if Thangles paper is still available, their website hasn't been updated since July of 2012.

I started the Buck-a-Block project at Omega's Quilt Shop near my home in Colorado Springs.  Sadly, the shop closed before the project was complete.  At the store closing sale, I bought enough of the fabric to complete the blocks, but not the setting kit.  I had a setting pattern from the January/February 2007 Quiltmaker magazine, so I plugged the block into EQ7 and played around with some designs.

The main fabric is a Faye Burgos design for Marcus Brothers Textiles.  If you look closely at the blue fabric, you can see there is a bit of green and a bit of gold in addition to the red and blue:


The red fabric is a classic from Robert Kaufman called "Fusions."  It is still being printed, and it also comes in  a matching green and matching gold.  So I plugged gold and green into the EQ7 block and came up with this:


If the blocks are rotated, a secondary pinwheel pattern emerges:
I had three blocks left to make, but didn't want to use the Thangles.  I like to use the EZ Angle tool to make my half square triangles (HSTs).  I misread the size and made 44 HSTs that are too small for the blocks.

I thought to make the quilt with just nine blocks.  But when I realized I had enough of the blue fabric left to make the last three blocks, I went ahead and made them.  I decided to make the leftover HSTs into Flying Geese and use them in the border:


I finished the top with just enough blue fabric to make Susie's Magic Binding.  The quilt will finish at 46" X 58" -- a good lap sized quilt.

This is my 5th finish for 2013!  Next up is the April Jelly Roll Party sample!







From the desk of your auntmartisignature