HRT But Not Like That

 I am moving on to Clue 4 of the Lupine Mystery quilt. And that means that I'm trying out a new tool, one of several special rulers that I have for making half rectangle triangles (HRTs but not the hormone replacement kind!). This Bloc-Loc one is actually a pair of rulers, one for each direction of the angle.  This makes the markings on the ruler so much easier to use for me. 

I really like how the Bloc-Loc channel grabs and holds the pressed over seam with the HST version that I've been using for a while now. Just to note: these Bloc-Loc rulers don't really work for pressed-open seams because the channel is cut to accommodate the three layers of fabric that is on one side of the seam versus the single layer on the other side.

Once I've made the trim on the first two sides, I just rotate the whole ruler with the block underneath it around and then slide it up the channel along the seam and trim the remaining two sides.

Repeat with the other ruler that has the angle going in the opposite direction and then I've got one set done. And then another, this goes pretty quickly once you get started.

 Still a few more left to sew, to finish up the rest of this set.

Next, I know that I need to make the next set with two prints that actually matter which side is "right side up" to make sure I really understand how to use these rulers.  It's so easy to turn over pieces when they're either these batiks or white on white prints that are "close enough" on both sides.

Shifting Slopes

I counted and figured out how many blocks I made, 200 exactly. Which is funny because I know that I did not at all plan for an even number like that. Just ended up that way? Eleven of them aren't included here as they were mis-cut due to my problem with figuring out the trimming instructions. So, I probably shouldn't use them. A few of them are probably not that far off but I'm not sure if I want to try and fudge it with a design like this that relies on all the diagonals matching up.

I've left the main part of the layout mostly untouched and fiddled around with the edges a bit. I've introduced some diagonal stripes a bit and I'm considering playing with that a bit more across the whole quilt. I will try that as I move the blocks around. I also might change the dimensions of the layout, taking out a column and adding a row.

Leeloo squinching up her eyes in hello to DS as he makes comments on the quilt in progress. He likes it a lot, so maybe I'll give this one to him when it's all done.
 

Slopes On The Wall

 

Finally, all the Slopes blocks were trimmed. I was so relieved, I can't even tell you. I had to really push through to finish trimming all of them. I'm not going to count them until I put them up on the wall, that'll be easier.

And that meant it was finally time to put them up on the wall and see how it looked. This is not all of the blocks, there's probably a little less than half left to put up. This was a very random placement and I messed up the bottom left corner from the regular diamond pattern. I like how my eyes can't decide where the diamonds are. I'm going to have to play around a little more with this before I start sewing. There were some good ideas in the Color Collective group on various arrangements, like arranging them more by color groupings.

Still On The Slopes

 

I'm at the all-too-familiar point in the process that I'm questioning why I made So Many blocks?!?! It's getting kind of old trimming all of these, because I want to get going on the sewing. I'm tempted to count how many, but that's just a delay tactic, it doesn't really matter at the moment how many there are.

The pile of trimmings is getting higher and higher as the stack of to-be-trimmed lefties and righties gets lower.

The two piles on the left are all the trimmed lefties and righties. The two on the right are the untrimmed ones. It looks like I'm finally past the halfway mark.  Wow, that glowing pink Trinket ruler really stands out in the picture doesn't it?

The ruler really glows in the big amount of sunlight that I now get in my workroom due to the absence of the trees that fell over in the storm last week. I may have to rearrange things in there to account for possible sun fading issues. Unfortunately the forecast is for another bomb cyclone situation again on Tuesday. Turbulent Tuesdays they're calling it because the storms keep arriving as if on schedule on Tuesday. 

Trimming the Slopes

It’s taken me a while to get down to trimming my blocks for the Color Collective quilt, Slopes. 

I was having trouble figuring out the instructions at first and had to watch the video several times as it wasn’t making sense to me in the written directions. I guess I really am a visual learner.

Now that I get it, it’s going much more smoothly and much closer to accurate.

I’m leaving notes for myself on the two stacks that I have left to trim.

All of these are so badly mis-trimmed that they’ll likely end up on the back of the quilt. I kind of like the diagonal stripes in this arrangement.

Here’s my two stacks of trimmed blocks, both lefties and righties.

I found that the new Latifah Safir HuRty ruler works very well for this. Having the quarter inch grid really is essential.

Some in use/action shots of the ruler. 

The blue painter's tape is there so that it’s easier to choose the right lines

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I don’t know if I’m using the ruler exactly as directed, but it’s working for me.

This post is courtesy of the blazing fast internet connection at the Felton library. Our internet finally went out yesterday afternoon and the cell service is reminding me of the dial-up 90’s internet connection we had. We had to drive out to get giant tarps to cover the crumbling hillside before the next storm arrives on Tuesday. We’re thrilled to see the mobs of PG&E trucks and workers. 

 

Random Pairs

 

The stack of half rectangle triangles for the Color Collective month two quilt was ready to sew together after my initial trial sewing experiment.

I devised a way of randomizing the pairing of colors and quickly sewed them up. 

Carefully pressed them open, and Tara Faughnan was right, it did save time to have pre-starched the whole    yardage of fabric instead of the individual pieces as you go.

It's a big stack that I've got to trim down to size, that's the next step, and then I'll play around with some arrangements up on the design wall.