Blue and White Ohio Stars

Early last month, my cousin Sam was finishing up dispersing the remaining bits of his parents' estate. Uncle Nick and Aunt Margaret (Maggie) were such fun, and we all loved spending time with them and Sam - which didn't happen nearly enough, as Uncle Nick's job required lots of traveling all around the US. They lived in far-off places: Alaska, New Mexico, Kansas, Tennessee, Maryland. Too far from family here in southern Ohio.

Over the years, Aunt Margaret took up quilting as a hobby and - yes, you guessed it - Sam handed off her quilting tubs to me. In the midst of all my purging, I took those tubs and sifted through - very selectively, I will say - for fabrics and UFOs I thought I would use and finish.

I am pleased to report that one of Maggie's UFOs has now been finished. In the depths of her tubs, I found a stack of hand-pieced Ohio Star blocks, all in blues with a white-on-white background. Stored right there, too, was her remaining yardage of background fabric and the remaining blues used in the stars. 

Having no idea what plan she had for completing this quilt, I decided to make setting blocks in the Stepping Stones pattern. This was her mother's (my grandma) go-to setting, so it made sense to connect the three generations with this common element. 

Finishing this was so enjoyable. It gave me hours of time to think about Aunt Maggie and all the great memories of her. As my mom's younger sister, there were plenty of stories told about her. From her love of kittens to barefoot antics on the farm to her being 'daddy's little girl,' she was the life of any party when she was home for a visit.

So far, all fabric used has been Aunt Maggie's, but for borders I am going to dive into my stash. I am sure I have some suitable options in my blue stash that will work for borders. I am thinking a narrow dark blue first, then a floral outer border. I will be auditioning options this next week.

It's pretty sweet to have finished this quilt. I have to think that Aunt Maggie would wholeheartedly approve of my choice of using the Stepping Stone blocks with her stars. It really makes such a pretty quilt.

I'm off today to visit with the Frankfort Girls! Our bi-weekly Friday morning session will be at Sharon O's house. I will stitch on Lake Effect - yes, I am still plugging away on it.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Jayne

I'm Just Not Satisfied

After finishing the Great Granny quilt, I was eager to begin something new. I'd had a grouping of three fabrics and a pretty good idea for how I'd use them. Or so I thought. As I made block after block, I realized that the quilt was not going to look as beautiful as I'd hoped. 

The three fabrics are long in my stash; I have had absolutely no plan for that print, and the three were not bought to go together. I just pulled fabrics, and with Sharon's help, we came up with this combination. 

My idea was to make stepping stone blocks with the solid rose and white fabrics and then set them with plain blocks of the print. Here is a closer look at the print fabric.

All of my pictures make the fabrics look darker than they truly are. I suppose more light and fewer shadows would have helped.

I stretched the print fabric onto the design wall, and as I made the stepping stone blocks, I placed them on to create the chains across the fabric. It just doesn't really speak to me. It doesn't have any 'zing.'

I stopped making blocks and spent a day ruminating. What will fix this? Make it anyway, even if it is uninspiring? Select a different background?  Make a pieced block rather than use a single fabric? 

I really don't want to make pieced blocks just yet, so I dug around to find alternative setting fabrics. Here are two that I auditioned.

This first fabric is a pretty feminine floral that I have had for ages. I like the interest it brings to the chains of the stepping stones.

This floral has a distinct 80s or 90s look to it, and I surely have had it that long. I do not have much of it. The dusty rose color most matches the rose in the stepping stones blocks, and again, the color in the photo is not true to reality. The upper left block and surrounding floral is the area that is most true to color. Shadows darken the lower parts of the picture.

I put the two florals side-by-side; this gives me a good look for comparison. I like the lighter floral better than the darker one. I will dig around a bit more today to see if I find any other fabrics to audition. Maybe I will find some 'zing' somewhere in the depths of the stash.

That's why I have a stash! 

Happy Quilting, Friends!