Progress on Evergreen State BOM

I am down to just needing one more block to have the majority of this top completed!  Yah!  There is another pieced border that is a part of the pattern, but because this top has so many bias pieces (I think nearly every block), I am going to skip that and just do some strips.   I am glad to see the light at the end of this quilt because I am out of some of the fabrics... I was searching through my scrap pile a couple of times to see if I had pieces that would work!


My poor Mariner's compass is turned so the wrong points are at the top (oh well), and the feather things next to it lost 1/4" in size because of trying to figure out a different solution than the instructions (again, oh well).

I think my two favorites are the ferry and coffee cup blocks. The windows in that ferry block are teeny!  The block itself is 12" finished, and the windows are probably 1/4" for the top and middle rows.

Pacific Fabrics 2015 BOM and Splendid Sampler

This week and today I have been getting my sewing mojo back again... sort of :)  At least it's more than the previous three weeks.  I don't think I posted updated blocks from the Pacific Fabrics BOM... I love the coffee cup.  If I did it again, I would change it a little but I really do like how it turned out.  Today I also finished up the apples in the top corner and started on the Mariner's compass.  That one has feathers or something (forget what they called them) that are along the side.  I am trying to figure out how to make them in a different way vs the way in the directions.  After putting the outside part on the mariner's compass on incorrectly, I decided to just put it aside for now and pick it back up again tomorrow.


My salmon row look more like swimming sharks :)  I'm ok with that.  If I had used fusible instead of needle turn, maybe the details would have been more crisp... but I really don't like quilting over fusible.  This hasn't always my preference, but after quilting through an older UFO with a lot of fused pieces, I decided I realllllly disliked it.

The long row on the left was fun to do.  There are the four panel pieces, but in between are "sound waves".  I have never tried to do curved piecing like that before, but I have seen it in patterns.  It was very easy to do and I will definitely incorporate that in other designs down the road.

My Splendid Sampler catch-up from this week:
25 and 26: These two were fun to do


27 and 28: I love how all these look together.  I had some issues lining up pieces for #28, but I really like the design and I plan to make a small quilt with various dress prints.


29: and today's finished Scrappy Happy Heart.  Quick and easy to finish.


So now I am all caught up with my Splendid Sampler blocks, including finishing the embroidery on the measuring tape one.  My plan is to work on the Evergreen State BOM and see if I can't get that into a top soon.  I need to get something off my design wall and I'm not ready to remove the sampler blocks just yet.

Here's to a new week!

Splendid Sampler Catching up...

My catch-up of Splendid Sampler blocks:


16 and 17.  I really loved the Family Stars block.


18 and 19: I still need to embroider the measuring tape block.


20 and 21: As much as I dreaded 20, I loved doing it.  I tried using Sulky Solvy for the first time.  It was a great product, but I missed catching the fabric in a few spots.  There is a learning curve, but I will use it again.


22 and 23: Goose on the Loose was fun.  I got frustrated with 23 unfortunately.


24: Ok, I will explain now why the last two were frustrating... Because I failed to read the part in the directions about TRIMMING DOWN the half square triangles. I kind of wish that instructions were set for the size and not an add-on trim down size, but that's just me. In an attempt to save on seams (because I am afraid I am going to run out of my fabrics) I calculated what size flying geese I would need. But I failed to account for the "trim down to" part. For block 23 I lost the majority of the tiny triangles that point into the center because I did not "trim down" my initial HST. And then for 24, I had to take it apart and resew because the block ended up at 7.5"... yes, I needed to "trim down to...". I'm kind of glad the next three are templates and applique.  And for the rest to follow, I need to make sure I read all the instructions before I cut and sew.

2016 Humble Quilts Doll Quilt Swap

Since my last post I have done a little sewing catch-up with my Splendid Sampler blocks (which will be a different blog post),  I am just two behind now so I am nearly current!  I am also about halfway finished with my fifth row of my flower garden quilt.  I can't believe it is growing after all these years--it's nearly a quilt!

Today I received a quilt as a part of the Humble Quilts Doll Quilt Swap; Small Squares Done Simple from Jessica Vaughn.  Cheddars and yellows are my favorite colors in quilts and I was so excited to see Jessica chose those colors.  So much fun!


And then she added in some extra goodies--totally unnecessary, but so much fun!


A refresher since I am adding this to the linky party at Humble Quilts Blog... this is the quilt I made and sent to Debbie Dodge:



go check out the other quilts from the swap here: http://humblequilts.blogspot.com/2016/05/celebrate-little-quilt-swap-linky-party.html
Ideas are formulating for next year if the swap happens again! :)

Flower Garden Progress

In the only recent sewing I have done in a month.... this afternoon I finally finished sewing my fourth row to my flower garden quilt.  I did some math and so far I have sewn 998 hexagons together into the quilt top.  Unless I decide to add more that the single grey side border (top of the pic), I will end up with 2233 hexagons to make up the quilt.  I am nearly to the halfway point!

I did take the part that I was working on with me to California when we were cleaning up my inlaws' home to put on the market, but I ended up only making a little bit of progress.  Since then I have wavering between not feeling well and not wanting to sew, to sewing a little bit.  I did work on one block from The Splendid Sampler, but I am currently 7 blocks behind in that project too.  I just haven't felt like sitting at my machine.  I have a feeling that springtime allergies is what's draining me.


My sister in law found this fun quilt (she tried to give it to me, but I told her to keep it since it is by her grandmother).  It was hard to get the correct color for the red, but the back was a lot of fun to look at.  Taking a peek behind some popped seams, it has a blanket as batting.








I think it's a variation on the Churn Dash.  There are fabrics from the 40's through I think the early 60's, including some feedsack prints.  It is full of scrappy goodness!