Sew Many Plans - October 2012

Time to review September's progress with my plans.

1. "Ruby" Wedding Quilt, 2. Wonky Braid for Judith, 3. Stargazing Block for Jan, 4. Bee Blessed Blocks - Sept 2012, 5. Antique Tile Quilt Top, 6. Cutting complete, 7. Joel Dewberry Modern Meadow quilt top, 8. Zippy Pouch for Mum, 9. 5" crumb blocks

• Ruby Wedding Quilt - completed, gifted and received with big smiles!
• HipBees Block - Judith's Funky Chicken Braid was heaps of fun to make and Jan was ultra organised and sent her block details early so I stitched up that one ahead of time too!
• Bee Blessed - I got a little carried away and made a few more blocks than intended. Pieced together one set of donated blocks for the Antique tiles quilt and prepared some scrappy binding and a label for it too.
• Strips and Squares Bed Quilt - cutting completed.
• Hopscotch Quilt - I did make a decision not to proceed with this as the gift it was initially intended for.  So, it will take a back seat for a while as I finish up the Joel Dewberry quilt that I have decided will be its replacement.
• Unexpected extras included a zippy pouch for mum and the 12.5" crazy scrappy blocks and the little 5" crumb blocks both of which I am hoping to make more of from time to time to deplete building scraps and help me overcome my fear of scrappiness.

September didn't afford much sewing time at all really and so I'm quite surprised I actually managed as much as I did.  I desperately want to believe that October might be a little more kind time-wise.  So here's what I'd love to get stuck into this month:

Bee Blessed - We have lots of projects on the go at Bee Blessed just now, so I'll be pitching in to see where I can help with those that need to be progressed.

Class Project - I am so chuffed to be going back to class again this month (oh how I have missed my Thursday nights), and am really looking forward to the applique techniques that Judith will be teaching.  I did well to get my place on this one because the spaces sold out in double quick time!  There won't be a finished cushion until next month, but maybe some of the little projects along the way will get finished up so I can share with you.

Joel Dewberry quilt - This quilt has to be ready before the last week of the month to be on time for packing up to send Down Under.

Not So Gross Quilt - I'd like to add borders to this quilt and prepare the binding so that it's ready for basting and quilting in November.

Squares and Strips Quilt (recycled shirts) - Try to piece 11 blocks for this quilt.

Sounds like I'd better get stitching!

Change of Plans

Always loving a good bargain, I have been keeping an eye out on sale prices for Joel Dewberry's Modern Meadow line and over the past year have collected this lovely little bundle.

Just perfect for the quilt which will replace my Hopscotch quilt which had been intended for my aunt.

I chose a block pieced from large sections so as not to chop up those bigger prints too much and I love them.

I used a white on white fabric (some of you are now feeling slightly queasy, I know) to add sashing and borders and I love how striking the blocks look against the brightness of the white.  In all honesty, while I am often partial to a white on white print, I probably would have preferred something else for this quilt.  But, as September seems to herald the arrival of every known invoice for fees - music lessons, swim club membership, school trip deposit and on and on and on - I had to work with what I already had, so w.o.w it was.

This quilt top feels fresh and clean and it makes me sigh with relief that I made a decision and got on with it.  I enjoyed this quick block and imagine more of these quilts in my future as a "go to" pattern when time is tight!

Must get basting ...

Weekend Update

Nothing big going on around here this weekend on the sewing front but there are some bits and pieces I can share.

First up is this fabulous Bee Blessed Antique Tile quilt top - 

I've been piecing the donated blocks together for the Bee and I think it's so stunning.  Of course, I have a penchant for blue and white quilts so this is right up my street, but I think you'll agree that this block looks great as a quilt.  Thank you so much to all of you who contributed blocks - can you spot yours?  If you don't see yours here, fear not, we have a second Antique Tile top in aquas/blues coming along with the remaining blocks that were sent to us so if yours isn't here, it'll likely be in there in due course.

September brought a return to hours of my week spent waiting poolside during swim training so I've been picking up my crochet again and the chevrons now look like this - 

Would you believe me if I told you there's an hour's work in every chevron stripe?  (Maybe I'm just slow!) This is soft and snuggly, and some days too warm to be working up in a stuffy swimming pool, but I am really enjoying making my waiting time productive again.

Also this week I finally got around to making a zippy cosmetic purse requested by my mum some time ago - bad daughter!

She likes angels, so while the rest of you are having heart attacks over the country angels in brown, I am happy that she will be okay with it!

And, I have finally reached the end of the 572 pieces I've been cutting from shirt scraps for my son's Squares and Strips bed quilt!

What's more, clever me already has 22 of the 88 eventual blocks completed? See ...

Single square blocks

Is that cheating? In any case it means just 66 blocks left to make!

So what have you been up to this weekend?

Let's Talk Scraps

If you've been popping in here lately, you'll have noticed that I have been prompted to try some scrappy blocks by Judith's choice of September Bee blocks for Bee Blessed and for hipBees.

All of this playing has got me thinking about scraps, so I thought I'd share my scraps with you.


Let's talk size ...

I have noticed over the past year and a half of blogging that one person's scraps are another person's stash fabrics and that's certainly true with me.

For some stitchers, scraps seem to be anything less a fat quarter, but for me, a scrap is anything less than about 8" square or less than 2.5" wide (like leftover pieces of jelly rolls), and anything less than 2.5" square is destined for my tiny scraps box.  It's not an exact science (even I'm not that organised!) but in general them's the rules.


Let's talk storage ...

Scrap boxes - just two!

My fabric stash is small by comparison to lots of folks' out there, but it's plenty to be getting on with and to be storing!  Anything bigger than a scrap gets neatly folded and sorted by colour (roughly) into my stash drawers.

But everything else goes into my Ikea storage boxes, one for larger scraps and one for the tiny scraps.  Again, I don't have a huge volume of scraps and I'd like to keep them consigned to just one box each so that they don't take over the room.

I used to just pitch all the scraps into the boxes with no sorting, but I found that by sorting them into colour packages (just little labelled ziplock bags) they take up less space and I am more likely to find what I need and to use them, which is after all the point.

As you can see, my tiny scraps are still in the process of being colour sorted.


Let's talk purpose...

A little while ago I confess I had a moment when I considered dumping my scraps.  I wondered why I was saving all these little pieces.  Did I have a plan for them?  Would I ever use them?

Of course, scraps are useful to have around for little applique projects or tiny embellishments, but really that didn't use up many in the space of a year.  Fear of scrappy projects also made me reticent to use them - how could I use them without making something look horrible?  Well, no more fear.  Making the blocks Judith suggested for this month has inspired me to make up some scrappies with a view to collecting them over time and making use of fabric pieces I might once have ditched.

So now I have what I'm calling my "By The Ways" (as I'll be making them alongside other things going on) -

• 12.5" crazy scrappy blocks (blocks in one colourway)

• wee 5" improv crumb scrap blocks (again in single colourways).

I love these blocks and am content to have found a way of using up scraps and playing around with my own abilities in "scrappy" (trying not to over-plan) in ways that aren't risking precious fabrics.  Besides all that, they are quite fun to whip up!

So, onwards and upwards with my scrappiness - thanks J for the kick in the pants motivation I needed to do something about the growing heaps of raggedy bits.

As the lady wishes ...

I got a bit carried away when I was taking this picture to show you the lovely bundle Jan has sent us (early) for her month as hipBees' Queen Bee in October.

I wasn't intending to start Jan's block until October proper, but I just couldn't put those wee FMF fabric back in their ziplock bag.  They called out to me to be played with (honest they did) and the chocolate didn't have a hope of ever seeing the inside of that bag again! Yum!

So, in my impatience to play, here's what I did

Jan requested star blocks of whatever sort we fancy really, but she did express a wee hankering after the Stargazing block from the Modern Blocks book.  So, happy to oblige, and because I have the book and I've been desperately wanting to make this block since I first saw it, the ipod went on and the the rotary cutter came out.

It was great fun to make and I will definitely make more of these one day.  Hope my version lives up to Jan's expectations!

All Came Good in the End

As you are all painfully aware by now the Ruby quilt I have been making as a wedding gift for my cousin has been a sorry saga - desperate quilting, a hole in the back (discovered after I'd quilted), binding stitched on to the back instead of the front before I realised and I could go on, but I won't bore you. Anyway,  for better or worse it's now finished and ready for gifting to the newlyweds next week.

For all the mistakes I made along the way, this quilt is still beautiful and that reminded me a little of my own marriage.  So, that's the blessing that I'll be sending with this quilt - that these newlyweds will know that marriage can be beautiful even if it's not always perfect.

In case you are interested the free pattern for the quilt is here.

Staying Organised

Whether it's a beginning of new term thing or not, I've had a bit of a frenzy around the house to try and get myself feeling organised again and my efforts have made it to the sewing room in the form of a shiny new magnetic notice board.

Exciting, huh?

Ok, well, maybe not.  But I just thought I'd show off my lovely new magnets which I thought of all by myself! (Not bad for someone who can barely speak her own name by 9pm these days!)

Little craft magnets, pretty buttons and a blob of craft glue and 30 seconds later Bob's your uncle - button magnets fit for your sewing notes, patterns, shopping lists and whatever else a girl's sewing room noticeboard needs to hold!

The little Union Flag brooch Di gave me last month has also become a magnet for the board just by slipping a magnet between the back and the pin (no gluing), which leaves it removable for when I want to wear it on my woolly scarf this winter.  Genius or what?  (No answers to the "or what?" please!)

I am really chuffed with these simple little magnets (instant gratification makes) and will be keeping my eye out for some much nicer buttons than my little box has at the mo to make a few more.  I also foresee some teeny, weeny bunting and a wee magnetic yoyo or two to continue the noticeboard prettification process (and hide the tops of the hooks we hung the board from).