Scrap Happy Top almost finished!

This is my top made at Goldie's Scrap Happy Day

There was a great turnout and allot of good food!

The top finished at 48 x 48. I finished the rows and added the borders this morning. Not quite finished with the top as there will be applique in the borders. Kim Diehl's version adds leaves. That was my original plan however since I decided to use geometric prints instead of floral I am going to use a geometric shape.

Jewel is the shape I decided on. These are blue fabric scraps cut out just for a layout. My plan is to use my EPP set that Beckie gifted me (thank you Beckie :0) for each shape and applique them on after the top is quilted. They will be all different colors, not just blue as in the photo. Three per snowball and probably seven in each of the corners. 

The plan is to use a lime green Glide thread and quilt circles and swirls. Didn't quite make it with my background fabric and had to use a different fabric for the corners so now the background is scrappy too! This quilt has been fun to make. A departure from the Civil War fabrics I usually work with. It's keeping me balanced :0) Big plus... all of the cut off corners from the snowballs and left over strips will be used to make HSTs and another block for Faithful!

Above is Lori of Humble Quilts Big Top quilt which was made from traded HSTs and later Lori hosted a QAL to make each block. I made one block (here is my block made last year) and after this project have enough to make a second block for my top. Kind of sounds insane but you have to be a quilter to appreciate the sanity of it all. The pleasure is in the process! AND I am using up allot of stash!!! Below is the first block I made...

The World Cup is done! Yea. I won't say who in case you haven't seen the game. Happy to say that the Netherlands are in the top three! Yea!!! Enjoy the rest of your weekend. Groetjes, Jo

Faithful

Final border added to Faithful this weekend. Not quilted, my plan is to make more blocks and HSTs for sashing. This block has bright colors, scraps from two BOMs last year.

Faithful in progress...

Faithful ~ Steps one and two

 Center block is Peace and Plenty. When I re-sized it to a 6 inch block it came out too small so I added an extra row of sashing.

Faithful ~ Step three

Great way to use up scraps and HSTs, or trade HSTs with other quilter as Lori of Humble Quilts did for her Big Top. Thank you Lori for another great SAL!

Here is a link to Lori's blog with pix of more blocks made.

Take a look at Lori's blog header, it's her Big Top made with 9 blocks, each sashed with additional HSTs for a finish. It's what I plan to do with my block.

Also worked on my Tree of Life project. Last two Pine Tree blocks finished. 

Center tree blocks are sewn together in a medallion. I am planning two 1/2 inch inner borders with a row of HSTs between them before I sew on the corners. Not exactly sure yet what size this will finish out at, close to 50 x 50 depending on the size of a red outer border, if I add one, may just bind it in the red.

Very frustrated with my longarm business right now and the reason I haven't posted the last two weeks. Mom is doing OK. She will be 98 this weekend! We had unexpected rain last night, a quick downpour, enough to make a mess of newly fallen leaves. Will have some clean up and sheltering plants today. Forecast is for night time temps down in the 30s this week. Fall has arrived here in Northern California! 

Enjoy your day!

UFO and a SAL

Working on my October UFO ~ making Tree of Life blocks this weekend. Two more trees to finish, they take some time and patience. Drafted new trunks as the new corner blocks are larger than the blocks in the center. Started with some ideas for the final layout, adding a saw tooth sashing around the center blocks.

New corner tree blocks in progress...the HSTs are squared to 1 3/4, finish at 1 1/4 inch.

The first tree trunk I drafted, the branches were too big and the roots too small. This one is just right...

This is my quilt where all the HSTs came from, the corners from all of the snowball blocks...

I've also started on Lori ~ Humble Quilts SAL ~ Faithful. Part one was to make any 6 inch block for the center. I decided on a Peace and Plenty block. First one made was in my Civil War Sampler with Barbara Brachman's BOW. It was 8 inches and I needed a 6 inch block for this project. Using Quilt Genie I made the block but it finished at 5 inches so I added the purple sashing. Part two was adding sashing and HSTs around the center...

and part three is adding another sashing and 44 more HSTs this weekend. Four of us had a conversation at dinner before a guild meeting last week about how different random means to a mathematician and a quilter. Sew I can't say this is random... it's organized chaos :0)

All the fabrics and HSTs are scraps and cut offs from two BOMs I made in 2011. Mostly from Flying Geese blocks. I make a habit of stitching a second line of stitching before cutting off the triangle corners. The sewn cut offs get thrown in a container with more HSTs, ready to be pressed and squared to size when needed. Also how I ended up with so many HSTs for my Tree of Life project above. Great for scrappy projects and Saw Tooth borders too. This SAL with Lori ~ Humble Quilts was the perfect project to use up more of them. Check out Lori's quilt top made with HSTs she traded with friends, it's Lori's header right now.

I love it when I see vintage quilts and the owner says "I remember that fabric in a dress". It happened just the other day when someone brought a vintage quilt in to my studio. A Dresden Plate quilt her grandmother made in the 30's. Since I haven't made cloths since my teens, I don't have scraps from dresses and such. This will be a fun way to remember past quilt projects.

Now to get out and enjoy the fine Fall weather we are having in Northern California. Hope you all get to do the same! Enjoy your day, stitching away. Thanks for visiting.

Groetjes, Jo