Palooza Top Finished

Here's the now completed Patchwork Palooza top. I'm very pleased with how it turned out, and now I'm glad I used the navy blue as the background.

Friend Jaye asked for a report on my experience at trying out chunking. I'd say it worked out pretty well overall. There were definitely a few spots where I had to stop and check I was sewing the right bit to the right part. So, I'd say it requires a little more or maybe just a different focus. Once I'd sewn the top three and then the bottom three sections together, it was just one more long seam across the middle. All the intersections matched up very well. (or well enough for me)

Now to decide on whether to add on a border or not.

Temperature Sashing

After getting all of the twelve monthly columns trimmed and right-sized, I now have a number to work with for the length of the sashing. That means that I'm now moving on to cutting up some sashing strips from the Painter's Palette Onyx black that I'm using. And then I'll be piecing them together to make them long enough to go between all the columns. 

Oooffff, I forgot how hard black on black sewing is.I need to turn all of the lights on to do it now. Guess my eyes are indeed getting older. Okay, all eleven strips of sashing are done, now to start piecing together this thing! 

Back to Temperature

Finally turning back to working on one of the UFO projects, The Temperature Quilt (from back in 2023!) Here's the stack of the twelve monthly columns that I'd pieced. And that's where I stopped because frankly I was sick of working on it.

The next step after piecing the columns is trimming off the top to a 90° angle.

The next step is to measure each of the twelve columns and make sure that they're all roughly the same lengths. This is so that when you sew them together with the sashing they'll match up well enough to make an overall good rectangle in the end. 

Guess there will be some bottom trimming and/or adding on of fabric. Thankfully I store the black that I was using along with the columns so at least I won't have to search for the correct shade of black to use.

Completed Central Old Town

 

I'm feeling like this blog has turned into all Old Town all the time, but that's just how it goes on a project like this. 

The studio assistant is wondering when it's ever going to be over!

It's a lot of time to sew something like this together. I know, duh, of course we already know that. 

Even though I'm steadily getting closer and closer to finishing this project, I think I'm feeling the pull to pull focus and work on one of my remaining UFO 2025 challenge projects.  

Especially when I get interrupted by messages like this from my sewing machine. Thankfully that was just a turn the machine on and off again kind of message.

But that concentrated effort has led to this! The central part of the quilt is now put together. 💪👍👏🙌🎉🎊 Now moving on to getting the three borders attached for a truly completed quilt top.

Last Two Columns

I spent a little time sewing the pieced sashings onto the remaining blocks to get the last two columns of the Old Town mystery quilt closer to final assembly. It's looking a little chunkier, right? Now for a whole lot of pressing before I put sew all of these columns and chunks together. I'm looking forward to the central part of this quilt being done. The end is coming into view! 

I'm even starting to consider what the backing should be. I think I might go with a wide-back fabric instead of doing a pieced one as the quilt top has So Many Seams. And then the binding fabric? Should I do all one fabric, all one colors, or piece together a bunch of the fabrics used in the top. I think a blue color might work out pretty well.

 

Three Columns

My attention turns back to Old Town and getting it all into one piece. It turned out that I hadn't sewn the blocks and sashing together in such a way as to make it easy to do the chunking, so it was time for some column making instead. 

The blocks with sashing went together very easily. Mostly worked out well for all the attention I paid to pressing seams in the correct directions.

Three columns out of five are now sewn together. (But not yet to each other)

Ten Towards Chunks

 

Another ten Old Town blocks have the sashing and cornerstones attached, after I iron them, then it will time for some "Chunking." It's getting easier to sew these together as I go. We learn by doing and all that.