Scrappy Blue Design Wall

I knew if I put all this bits and pieces together on the wall,  I'd end up laughing at myself, thinking about all the ways I imagined I'd use blue scraps this month for the rainbow challenge and how my goals were crazy ambitious for me.  But I couldn't resist doing it anyway.

From the top (left):

Scrappy Oak Leaf - this is the scrappy version of one of last year's lotto blocks (pattern is on the Block Patterns page).  This block is 10 x 15 inches.  I plan to make one or two each month.

Mod-Mod QAL blocks - The blue double chevron blocks were made when I decided to make a scrappy rainbow version of the quilt using the rainbow scrap challenge color of the month.  The Double Chevron block pattern is also on the Block Patterns page).

I made the black and white abstracted feather blocks last summer–now you can see that my oak leaf block pattern for the starting point for those. My plan for this month is to make some pieced scrappy washings for these and make a pair of pillow covers.

The rest I've talked about before.  The letters are part of a quilt design (that I don't anticipate finishing this month); the broken dishes star blocks are part of an ongoing rainbow scraps project (I need 8 more blue ones); and the paper pieced blocks I'm making without a plan and will make as many as I can from the scraps I have.

This afternoon, I'll be cutting and sorting triangles for the broken dishes blocks and preparing some rework for stitching tonight during Downton Abbey.

Updated on Monday to add the link to Design Wall Monday.

You Asked–Here Are My Answers

People here (and on Flickr) were curious to see the block(s) made from the drawing I posted on Sunday.  Here's my first finished block.

After making the templates and cutting fabrics for two blocks, I saw how two of the smallest pieces could be combined into one. 

On Monday I made the new template, cut more fabrics, as well as fabrics for a third block and Slow Stitch Sunday grew into Slow Stitch Monday night.

These blocks are 7-1/2 inches (finished size).  I have made 3 each of 12 patterns.  I drafted the last one because somehow I never received it and my attempts to reach out to the quilter who organized this quilt-along in 2010 failed.

The process of drafting the block by hand was fun.  Maybe later this year, if anyone is interested, I'll put together a tutorial for anyone who would like to give it a try.

I have left the decision of the color of the outside of the last two blocks until I have pulled out all the completed blocks and put them on the design wall to see what color/fabric will work best in the context of the whole quilt. (I couldn't make myself wait on the first one–it really just had to be red).

If you are looking for method in my brightly color madness, the rule I created for myself when choosing fabrics for these blocks was that they all contained the Laurel Burch fabric and a black and white print.  Every block also contains at least one warm and one cool color.   I challenged myself to work with a lot of bright colors in this project.

Another mystery solved:

It is a sentiment that I thought women of a certain age (like me) or fans of Nora Ephrom–whose book, Sometimes I feel Bad About My Neck and Other Thoughts on Being a Woman, inspired this idea–would recognize.

Someone asked why I was making all the e's the same size when I clearly had different sized letters.  Now that they've been arranged and sewn into words and phrases, you can see that the two different sizes are used in different words.

More Bits and Pieces

Good morning.

My Sunday night appliqué went well.

I dotted the I in good morning with my quarter-sized circle appliqué and made another potential folk-style flower block for the tea towel challenge.

This morning, my design wall has all the bits and pieces I've made and may include in the quilt ... in no particular order.

I'm joining the linky party on  Judy's Design Wall Monday–a good place to go for quilting eye candy on Monday mornings–and Esther's WOW link list–for WIPs on Wednesday.

Over the weekend, besides playing with these blocks, arranging and re-arranging them on the wall, I pulled the information and images from a couple of my blog posts here and on the Block Lotto about making the wonky roses, like those in my quilt, A Whole Lotta Love, and put them in a print-friendly format.  Those that are interested can download it here:

Sophie's Tips for Free-Pieced Rose Blocks

I'll also add a link to download it on my Freebies page.

Ta Da!

I was motivated ... well into the night.  The extra Wonky Rose blocks were made and borders were added. Here's my Lovely Finish for February.

   

This quilt embodies many of the things I love about group quilts.  I am looking forward to quilting it, but until my sewing machine problems are resolved, I'll settle for the knowledge that my perennial work-in-progress is no more.  I finished a few other projects this month, but this 11th hour finish feels the most satisfying.

Since everyone seems to be talking about the rose blocks, I plan to put together my notes, which were previously published here and on the Block Lotto and create a print-friendly document for anyone who's interested.  Leave me a comment and I'll be sure to email you when it's ready.  These blocks really a great way to play with scraps.


If you made some of the word blocks for the Block Lotto that I won three years ago and don't see them ... they could be part of my plan for some back art for this quilt.

Updating to join the linky parties, Weekend Update on the Block Lotto, Fresh Sewing Day on LilyQuilts and Can I get a Whoop Whoop on Confessions of a Fabric Addict.

It's out of the project box

. . . and finally back on the design wall.  Appropriate project to spend Valentine's day with, don't you think?

Friends from the block lotto community have been sending me rose blocks to help and I think I have enough to get serious about finishing this one. This isn't all the words, but I wanted to put as much as I could on my temporary design wall to see if I still like the idea of words and roses.

When I pulled out the project box and unpacked the blocks made ... look what I found in the bottom–more red (and pink) scraps!

I think I will need to make a few more words or phrases, enough roses to fill in-between and to form the border, but ... I see a lot of these found scraps becoming triangles for more scrappy stars.

Follow the links at the bottom of Judy's Design Wall Monday post to see more quilter's design wall.

Playing with Scraps

While I watched all three hours of LOST last night, I pulled out some scraps and free-pieced a few words and played some more with strings.

I'm having too much fun with these words, but I really ought to make some more "love letters" for the block lotto this month.


I'm sure my recent adventure with strings informed my decision to string piece the heart.

This afternoon, I pulled out more scraps and played with the idea of a black & white border.

Since black and white quilts never seem to photograph very nicely and I'm thinking this doll-sized quilt could become a blog badge for supporters and friends of the Block Lotto, I'm inclined to go a different way. . . isn't it interesting how seeing something on a computer screen can make you see how/why you don't like it as much as you thought ;-)

It's back to the design wall and more playing with scraps for me, I think . . .

Edited to add, here's a photo of where I ended up.

The borders will be trimmed a bit. I will probably bind it in a bright blue or red.