I had a busy week in the sewing room.
I am so happy…my patriotic spider web string quilt is a top!!
Oh, I love it. Mine is inspired by Bonnie Hunters quilt from the book String Frenzy.
You can find the book HERE.
I changed things up a bit. I added borders. Hers doesn’t have any. I think it looks a little more complete with borders.
It’s the next quilt heading to the longarm. I need to put together a backing for it. Happily, my friend Doreen and I met for coffee on Saturday, and she gifted me some patriotic backing fabric.
A blog reader mailed me two bags of bonus triangle leftovers. Hmm. There are LOTS of trimmings from a project. I’m not sure what I’m going to do with them. Right now, I’ve started sorting them into piles.
I think I’ll sew a seam on them and then see how big they are. The majority of them are white and navy. Hmm. Patriotic quilt, maybe. I think they will be trimmed to 1 1/2″. I jumped ahead and have a slew of them sewn already…I need to start ironing and trimming.
I know I’m not the average quilter, but things like this make me happy. I love the potential and challenge of coming up with something for them.
I ended up talking to Kelli about these and came up with an idea…I could make this quilt. It is also in the String Frenzy quilt book I showed above.
It’s another Bonnie Hunter quilt….another string quilt. Right now, as Bonnie has it, the friendship star blocks are red. I would have to change to make them blue…Essentially, I would just change things out. Where she has blue, I’d put red, and where there’s red, it would be blue. Hmm. I like that idea. I know, I know…I can never just stay with one project and finish it. HA!! My brain is always looking for the next thing.
Kelli quickly volunteered to help make some of the string blocks. She loves string blocks. I need 600 ish half square triangles for this…so I have a ways to go with this project…but it would be an awesome way to use these tiny scraps up. So I guess I’m starting this quilt…only on the back burner…but I’m starting it.
Speaking of things on the back burner…a blog reader wrote to me saying she didn’t even know I started Midnight Flight. That’s this quilt. I did kind of sneak this quilt in. My friend Doreen had started this. I only think she had a few of the cheddar four patches done. Strips were cut for more four patches. Some other things were cut out, too. I am trying so hard to move out UFOs, and this one got pulled out of the cabinet.
I have been sewing on this in the background. You can see that I’m making noticeable progress. I’m was a bit short of fabric, but happily Doreen had a bit more that I needed. I need to work on the purple units, and then I can start sewing this into blocks.
This week I got the black and neutral half square triangles sewn…and trimmed.
During my morning sessions of sewing for about 30 minutes, I’ve been concentrating on my Twirl Around quilt.
I know I’m going to love the quilt when I’m finished, but right now, it hasn’t been my favorite to work on. The pieces are small, and it takes quite a bit of sewing to get only a small block. I’ve been working on it right away in the morning. That way, I have the work past me, and I feel good about the rest of the day. Before long I’ll sit down and pound out the rest of the blocks…I’m getting close to that.
Because they are so cute once they’re finished, it’s real motivation. I have them all done now and only need to concentrate on the alternate blocks…that’s the ones on the right in the photo below.
I ended up getting Ila’s UFO completely into a quilt top. I’ll write more about it and how it all came together in another blog post. In the meantime, here is the top.
I also started the longarm work on my Train Tracks quilt. I wish I had it done, but I’m taking any progress I can get as a good thing!!
Oh my word! It was a good week. I made progress on six different quilts!! Hopefully I can keep some momentum going.
Seeing all those tiny fabric offcuts, I was wondering if you have a compost bin in your garden. If so, you can add any little pieces of cotton or linen and it will compost down, saves putting in the household bin. My compost bin in the garden is open and I sometimes see little birds in there rummaging about, and I wonder if they are taking some colourful patchwork fabric for their nests.
Your quilts are beautiful. I don’t work with little pieces that often but what you’ve done with them is incredible! Just gorgeous!
Love and prayers
You’ve done it again! Another super week! You were sayin on You Tube that you didn’t sew for six months before your back surgery. You are sure making up for it!
The String Spider Web is wonderful and will be a lovely wedding gift. Your Twirl Around blocks are darling and this will be a great quilt. It will be fun to see what you do with the blue and white triangles. Nice work!
Such inspiration to get me working more on my projects! Love your work on these. Would you like some more half square triangles? My bin of them is getting full and I need to pass them on. Primarily reds and white/creams.
Your patriotic spider web is beautiful! You and Kelly did a good job. How nice to have a daughter who likes to sew with you. It will be a lovely wedding gift.
I see that the March MADNESS brackets have Iowa’s men’s teams in Sweet Sixteen. I am a UCONN fan, and both men and women still playing. I think you like the women’s teams better, so do I.
I am amazed how much you accomplished. I wish I had the patience to sew such little pieces and make something beautiful like you do. The patriotic spiderweb is beautiful. I was “studying” yours and Kellie’s book while waiting for husband’s surgery and there are three in there I MUST make. I thought maybe I should do like Jo does and have all three going at once! You really get determined and get things done.
i was wondering if you have ever thought about training someone to give you some breaks on the longarm?? I know you do it all but thought for some catch up or deadline time you might have a bit of pampering of your back????? Who knows maybe one of your “boys” might like to put in a bit of muscle time. Sorry to be sticking my nose in it but it is out of concern.
If it gets to be too much, my friend Carla is a longarmer and I’ll hire her. For now, I’m okay. Thanks for thinking of me.
I think your string quilt is lovely. I believe every quilt needs a border!
I just finished Dawns Early light. I just did 4 of the blocks. It seemed to take forever. I donated it to our Historical Society for a raffle. I loved it. Might have to make one for myself.
You have been busy and the finish on Ila quilt is perfect. I love the string fling book and I need to make one and use up lots of scraps that are taking up space.