Scrapping Right Along

Many quilters know about leaders and enders, that technique made famous by Bonnie Hunter of Quiltville in which you are always sewing - never cutting the threads at the machine - here is Bonnie's explanation. I'm not a purist about this, but I try to do it as often as possible. For example, when I'm making a Blockheads block or one for the sew along we Frankfort girls are doing, I reach for 2-inch blocks for the scrappy quilt I've been working on.

Consequently, I have a good-size stack of 4-patch blocks piled off to the side of my sewing table. I cut a whole bunch of triangles of red and white, for the first round of the square-in-a-square blocks I'm making. Trimming them is always satisfying; they line up so nicely when sized properly with trimming.

Then I continued with the outer round of triangles. Then, these too, needed to be trimmed. Throughout this month, I have accumulated quite a few blocks and I think it's time to begin sewing rows together.

I have 30+ white blocks and 30+ red blocks. I need a whole lot more. I will make blocks as long as my fabrics hold out. Of course, the 4-patch blocks will be unending. The red is plentiful. The white, though, is running thin. I will either have to buy some (which defeats the purpose of making a scrap quilt) or substitute some likely similar white. I will dig around; there's a good chance I've got some.

So, as the month of scrap quilting comes to an end, I have barely dented the scraps available here. I will have, though, a mighty pretty quilt when all is said and done. Mighty pretty, indeed.

Happy Quilting, Friends!