Almost Mini Pumpkins Top

 

I buckled down and got all of the mini pumpkin blocks stitched together.

It took a while but they turned out well, except for one trimming mistake that I made.

All the blocks completed and up on the design wall together. Yes, it's going to end up being a rather large table runner. It may instead end up being a sort of banner/wall quilt. Depends on how I feel in the fall I suppose.

I've gotten the blocks sewn into rows and now just need to sew them together.

Mosaic Runner Top Done

Here's where I ended up with the mosaic table runner. Or so I thought...

One last rearrange before final assembly.

And one more little change before the last seam was sewn. That upper left hand corner block got turned 180°. Now I'm done and all ready for layering and quilting.

 

Even More Mosaics

Making more Mosaic Blocks for my table runner project. Using up the scraps from making the other blocks to make the smallest size blocks.

Not a final arrangement but I think I have almost enough to figure out how to assemble this thing now.

 

More Mosaic

During Sew Day, I made some more blocks for my 1-2-3 Mosaic class project. I think it's heading towards being a table runner size project.

We got to have a little on-site field trip break to see inside the sanctuary at the church that we hold our Sew Days. The beautiful display of rainbow origami butterflies was being hung up.

And our guild member, Mary C. made this gorgeous banner that hangs in the entryway. 

Spring Speaking to Summer

 

Finally, the binding is completely attached, the sleeve is added, and Spring Speaking to Summer is dropped off for display in the BAMQ group challenge exhibit at the San Mateo County Fair.

I think the binding turned out pretty good on the display side. Not perfect on the back, but it's a table runner so I don't really care too much.

It's a weird one for sure!

It turned out so curvy, it almost has a waist. 

The bottom section (the "Summer") is my favorite part of the whole thing. Guess I like Summer?

Seasonal Binding

 

Welp, the binding I posted about for my BAMQ challenge quilt, Spring Talking to Summer, had to be removed. I didn't remember to give myself extra folds to make it around those big curves when I turned the binding around and over the quilt edge. Yes, it was a lot of "un-sewing" but it will be worth it. I pinned the whole thing folded bits and all.

And I even went to the extreme measure of first basting it to really make sure it'd work and look good.  I just didn't want to have to un-sew the whole ding dang thing again. So....now that the binding is stitched on for real, tis finally time for the hand sewing and finishing. Ack!

Binding season

It’s Binding season around here lately. Guess that’s good because I’m maybe finishing some things? I found a great color of bias tape to use for the binding of the BAMQ challenge quilt.

I had to check the color all along the length of this piece.

It’s pretty close to the darkest color of the quilt. That’s how I choose binding colors usually (but not always).

I had to trim the excess backing fabric away first.in some cases, I’d do a satin stitch or couched ribbon sort of binding.

 But this going to be a table topper which means it needs a more solid and reliably durable finish that will hold up to lots of washing. Now for some hand stitching, oh joy.🤩 

The Last New and Circles

 

My order from Sewtopia for additional Ruby+Bee fabric to finish my challenge quilt arrived. And of course while I was there (on the website, not in the actual store in Utah), I had to order some sale fabrics, a pin and some checked webbing. That's it, no more fabric buying for the year. I'm officially full up of fabric now. 

I love Happy Sew Lucky patterns and was so happy to see this pin which I will wear during the next few months as I write my political postcards.

Two Ruby+Bee solids, Rain Cloud and Turmeric, two Carolyn Friedlander prints to add to my collection. Someday I'll make a quilt with just those fabrics, maybe one of her patterns. A button print in the oddest colors, the background is almost a match to the Turmeric solid. And a very cute tossed calendar print to use on the back of my calendar quilt.

A trip to a LQS with friend Jaye, The Granary led to two more fabrics getting tossed into the final new fabric purchases pile. One a really interesting layered print by Valori Wells, and a fabric that I'd resisted buying earlier, the completely made-up just-for-fun Crytptids of the National Parks. This will be the backing for my National Parks panel when DH and I go traveling when he retires.

An interesting table runner pattern from Atkinson Designs. I'm pleased to see it offered at the same price online and for the .pdf version too. Not sure which month this will be for in my monthly table runner rotation, depends on which fabrics I choose.

From Sue Spargo online, after resisting the Toned Down Circle Sampler pattern several times I broke down and got it. It is sold with a kit, which I didn't buy as I have a lot of embroidery threads and I don't need to exactly replicate the pattern's colors. That led to me making a database (of course) of which embroidery threads I do have on hand. That was quite a fun diversion to look through all of it! And yes, I have plenty to do this pattern. 

This wool/acrylic Ellana thread was the only type I didn't have so I bought the kit pack. I already have the Sue Spargo book, Creative Stitching, that explains the stitches that are combined in each circle.

Final Project Quilting: Sláinte!

Here it is, Sláinte! all sandwiched up and waiting with the binding all ready to put on once I get the quilting done.

When choosing threads for the quilting I almost went with the orange, for another of the Irish flag colors, but since I don't have any white on here, it seemed like it would be a bit garish as I'm planning on doing embroidery stitches. I went with the darker green instead.

 Here's my final entry for Project Quilting this year. Sláinte! Made for the prompt Irish Chain using a whole bunch of the various greens I dyed most recently.  As it only had to be "based on" or "inspired by" the block design I went a little far afield. You can see one proper Irish chain block, but then it morphs from that.

The quilting was done with two directions of the same embroidery stitch. I thought it kind of looked like a chain. 

The binding was one of the hand dyed greens. I used Wonder Clips all the way around while using a machine embroidery stitch. In this picture the bottom row of squares look very blue, but they're actually blue green.

Worked out very well, I have to remember to use those clips the next time.  Here's a close up of the binding. I kind of wish I'd changed to an even darker green, but I still like it. 

I left this on our dining room table and came down this morning it was just glowing in the sun, like a patch of a greener than green field.

I used two of the embroidery curvy lines on this to represent all the "snakes" that remain in Ireland. Snakes as in Pagans that is, as Ireland has never had actual real life snakes. That whole St. Patrick story is pretty much just that, a story, cloaked in the usual allegory. 

Sláinte! and Cheers! to Project Quilting, I've really really enjoyed participating in all the challenges this year.  I hope they do it again next year.

Sláinte! Begun

 

For the final challenge for Project Quilting, we've been prompted to work with "Irish Chain". Of course, that means green of some sort, and since I've been dyeing lots and lots of greens trying to match my Temperature Quilt greens, I have a lot to choose from. I cut out twelve 4.5" squares and paired them up. By the way, this is called Sláinte, which is the Irish and Scottish Gaelic word for Cheers! 

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I watched a great tutorial for making this sort of block (Double Nine Patch) and followed the instructions. First the opposite sides of the squares are sewn together using a short stitch as all the seams are getting pressed open.

Then the sewn squares are cut vertically in the center in line with the seams.

And then cross cut horizontally which gives you four pairs of squares sewn together. 

After pressing open all the seams, I started arranging the sewn pairs. I swear this part took the longest.

This one didn't really work to show the pattern of the Irish Chain block which a sort of spreading out across a quilt type of block instead of small and contained.

I like this one as it reminds me of a Brigid's Cross, but I didn't want to make something that wide as this was now seeming like a table runner shaped thing in my mind.

This is what I ended up going with, the essence of the connecting blocks in the Irish Chain block pattern, but the skinny version. 

The blank spaces will get filled in with strips of one of the same fabrics. I tried out several of them and landed on this one. Now to get this assembled, layered, quilted, finished and posted in time for the deadline on Sunday.

Make It Work

 

I picked up a "Make It Work" bag from BAMQG Super Sew Day. I'm supposed to put these elements together into a quilt top for our guild donation efforts. It's going to be a challenge, but I really like the colors. Time to use my Kitchen Sink Quilting skills. On the left is part of the March Temperature Quilt layout.

I also was feeling happy about getting the Orange You Glad bullseye quilted so I also picked up an assembled donation quilt that needs quilting. It's fairly small and simple and the fabrics are super cute. I'm not going to densely quilt it so it'll get done quickly.It came all rolled up, a top, a back and the batting.

Cute fabrics, huh?

I like the fabrics on the backing.

After all the quilts had been photographed and rolled up and put away, that left behind the table runners. So here's a group photo of four of them before they get put in the closet where they should live unless they're out on tables. Three are recent finishes from this year, the Rock Candy on the left was from back when I did Journey2Nebula