Plans and Reviews

The project plans for August are taking shape, and I'm eager to share them with you. Mostly, the plans for the month will involve quilts I've had on my yearly goals list and projects "uncovered" when I went digging for that black/gray fabric back in June.

Let's just review those '23 goals, and see how we're doing...

The print is a bit small, but if you click on the list it can be enlarged. It is also linked to my original goals post back in January.

Our tendency as quilters is to fixate on how miserably we are doing at completing our goals, and I could certainly do that, too. However, I am pleased to say that I've been successful in staying on task as far as the goals list is concerned. Now, I may not be on track to complete very many items, but I am sticking to the list - mostly.

I attribute one simple thing to my staying on task - Post-It Notes. I often make the list and then forget the list - I post it in January and then - out of sight, out of mind - I don't see it again unless I think to go back to look at it.

This year, I wrote several of my most-want-to-make quilts on notes and plastered them to my machine. Works like a charm! I see every single day the things I most want to do!

In fact, two of those notes have been removed because they are done! These two notes have been removed from the front of my machine.

 Below is the pine tree quilt. It's inspiration was our trip through the Rocky Mountains and those never-ending, awe-inspiring vistas of jagged, tree-lined mountains.

Pine Tree Quilt, aka Alpine, was finished in late June. It still needs to be quilted, of course.

 The other "finish" took a bit of a turn and became two quilts. I thought I wanted to use my Wm. Morris remnants to make a diamond quilt. But when I pulled out the remnant tub, I realized that I mostly had darker pieces left, and I didn't think the diamond pattern would suit. So I put the Morris fabric aside, and pulled a gazillion floral prints. That became my diamond quilt which I started in Florida back in January-February. I finished the flimsy in April (I think) but I don't see a post about it in my archives. *smh*

To use the WM remnants, I decided to make economy blocks. This suited me, and I proceeded. I have no post that I can find in which I shared this flimsy - I don't even have it on my list of quilts for '23. (I tell you, I am failing big time at keeping this blog up to date and accurate!)

I need to get this flimsy out and do a proper photo shoot of it - I don't think this is the full flimsy, but it's the best I can find. *again,smh*

Anyway, I took one idea - WM diamonds - and turned it into two quilts. 

The one I'm currently working on is  Posies and Polka Dots. I last actively worked on this in November. Then I put it away for the holidays and the Florida months, and basically have only dreamed of it since. How nice to have this back under the needle!

The two pics above show different layouts - can you detect the difference? I couldn't decide which version I wanted, so I have spent a lot of time thinking about this while I make more blocks. I needed more of all three varieties, and that has been very satisfying to work on.

I have rambled enough. I do have an August wrap-up collage to bring tomorrow, plus I'll talk more about those Post-It Notes  -  and who knows what else??

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Proper Reveal

I realized my error when writing the previous post; I'd never properly photographed and shared my finished quilt top Floral Diamonds. That is an oversight I shall correct today.

In that previous post, I was attempting to show the earlier quilts made with William Morris fabrics along with this one, the one on which I changed my mind.

This quilt top was largely made in Florida, and I finished it - squaring it up - after getting back home. It was the perfect traveling quilt as this "one-block wonder" required no pattern or major concern with counting or units or  placement. Actually, with all the diamonds cut ahead of time, I really only concerned myself with attempting to evenly distribute the colors and fabrics as randomly as possible.

I'm so glad that I did this quilt in florals and not the William Morris fabrics as I'd originally planned. This floral look pleases me so much, and I am really liking how my current WM quilt is shaping up.

This old business can now be put to the archives. I will add a picture to my records for '23 completions, and move on with current endeavors.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

 

Floral Diamonds Progress Report

 I have had a great time sewing floral diamonds together over the last month or so, and I have quite a sizeable flimsy taking shape as a result.

The current flimsy covers the bed, but the sides are not yet far enough along to have straight edges that work. Do you know how hard it is to think in right angles and straight north and south lines when sewing 60-degree diamonds? My brain is not very well equipped for such stuff.

Instead of cutting half diamonds and corner diamonds, I am just going to use my long acrylic ruler and cut off the edges to establish my straight sides. 

But I am not to that point yet. Like the picture above shows, I have some corners to fill in. Short rows at this point, so they make up fast. However, I am running low on diamonds, and my variety is diminishing.

When I got back from Florida, I had 1.5 inches of diamonds left in my stack. At the beginning, I had 4.5 inches! Having sewn and added quite a few more rows, I have far fewer than an inch-and-a-half as I type this. I am hoping that I can salvage some diamonds from my cut-off sides to add in where needed. Otherwise, I will be digging out more floral fabric and cutting additional diamonds to finish the job.

I give myself another week to finish off this quilt top. I have so very few diamonds remaining to be added; it shouldn't take too much time or effort to git'er done.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

The Diamonds Are Cut

My diamond-cutting session proved successful. This project is shaping up satisfactorily, I must say. Hopefully, the sewing will go as smoothly as the cutting went.

I was a little worried that my selections ran darker than I desired, so I dug out some yellow and light green to add to the mix. Definitely helps.

Here's my big 'ol stack of diamonds - all 4.5" of them! I do wonder how big this quilt will be! We shall see together!

To see how this quilt will be constructed, you can click back to this post. I was making Erin's Diamonds at the time (2013), and I followed the directions in a Kaffe Fassett book. It's funny re-reading that post. I remember being so intimidated to tackle that quilt, and I also remember being so surprised at the ease of construction. It was actually fun to make, and I trust this one will be just as enjoyable.

I hand quilted Erin's Diamonds, and you can see that 2016 finish by clicking here.

Hope you are having a wonderful Thursday!

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Feeling It

Let me begin by showing you why I've been away from my blog for several days. I now have another interest besides quilting. I had my GRANDMA hat on all weekend. *smile* 

We stayed at DD's while they went away for a couple of days. We had the pleasure of Miss Cate's company. What a delightful time. Also demanding and exhausting.

I needed Monday to recover.

Catherine Alice; 11 weeks.

Go ahead and say it - she is the most beautiful baby in the entire world. In the history of babies. Yes. That would be our Cate.

Monday, as I said was recovery day. Tuesday was cutting day. I have a project I want to work on while we are in Florida. The plan is to have it all cut out before leaving.

And that gets me to the title - feeling it. 

How many of you quilters have to be in the mood for a project? Or what do you do when the idea in your head doesn't really end up being as gorgeous as you'd expected? 

Back in the fall after I finished Lil' Orphan Scrappy, I determined that I would use the remaining William Morris prints in a diamond quilt. I further determined that I would cut the diamonds ahead of our month in Florida and work on them while we are away.

I was all set to begin cutting the diamonds yesterday, and piled all the larger pieces on the table.

Bleh. I am just not feeling this at all. There doesn't seem to be enough variety to suit me. I used all the neutral and red pieces from the collection in the quilt above; I am left with blue, brown, gold and black.  Bleh. Double bleh.

So I put it aside. I will think on this pile of leftovers for awhile and revisit later.

Why a diamond quilt? I made one for Cate's mother back in 2016, and it was so  much easier than I expected.

I've wanted to make another diamond quilt and have seen several recently while browsing the internet. One I recalled was on Pinterest made with floral prints. Maybe this would be the way to go instead.

From Pinterest

I have an entire dresser full of fat quarters that I have been collecting since the '80s. Plus yardage. Plus remnants. Plus scraps. Certainly there should be plenty of florals mixed into these fabrics for making a quilt like this. It seemed like a good time to dive into that vast stash and begin creating something beautiful. 

Go for it!

My fabric pull looks a bit on the dark side compared to the inspiration picture, but I am moving forward with it anyway. I did add more yellow after cutting this entire pile. I do not discount the possible need to add even more lighter fabrics as I move on through this project. (Or maybe just use less of the darker colors.)

The diamonds are big, and maybe I've cut far more than I need. I don't have a count. And it's anybody's guess how many I will need. I'm just gonna' wing it - in other words, follow my normal quilt-making method.

Packing for Florida has begun. All this along with the basic sewing needs will be making the trek south. It's hard to project just how much time I will have for stitching, but  I do want to try to make some headway on this quilt.

Happy Quilting, Friends!