29 January

I can't believe that January is almost over, and I have managed to make one quilt block every day!!!  Today's block uses more HST units, and is an old block that has been around since 1897.  

29 Jan

I will be happy when we can start using more lights in our blocks.  All mine seem to be very dark, but when I look at my scrap bin, that is what I have the most of.  So perhaps this is a good thing to use up all those dark scraps of fabric.

Yesterday I got the rest of the borders on my Stars for a New Day center medallion, and I have to admit, I am really liking how it's turning out so far.  For the next month, I will be making pinwheels, for another border, and more of the saw tooth stars for the final border.  After the pinwheels, I will be making 4 star blocks per month (although I don't have to wait for each month to come to get the instructions, so I can work on more than 4 in any given month).  And won't be sewing anything else to the center until all those stars are complete, as they will form yet another border after the pinwheels.

Today, I need to work on my Imagine block for February, so I can have it to hang on our door by the 1st.  I have it all fused, just need to stitch everything down, then add the batting and backing and hanging sleeve to it.  After I get February's done, I want to start on March's.  My goal is to make two every month until all 12 of them are done.  Since it's snowing here this morning, it is a good day to spend sewing. 

Until next time... Happy Crafting!!! 

28 January

Today's block is more HST... what a surprise!!  :-)   I also started making HST for another quilt I plan on doing, but not for some time.   After posting about the quilt I saw at the Houston International Quilt Festival yesterday, I decided that I would save all my orphan HST units and make a quilt using them, of any size.  This project is going to be one of those that is in the back of my mind as something to cut fabric for, or make an extra HST unit or two as I'm making them for other things, but I won't even think about putting it together until I have a whole lot more HST units. I know if I use different size HST units, I will have to get creative in how to make them all fit together, instead of just trimming them all to the smallest common size. But that will be part of the fun of creating that quilt.

As I was working on today's 365 Challenge block, I read the instructions, and it said to make HST units and trim to 1.5".. okay, fine not a problem, except that I pulled out some of my Triangulations papers for HST that FINISH at 1.5".  So after I realized that my brain stopped working, and I made the wrong size HST unit, I decided to save those, instead of trimming them all down, and just make more at the correct size.  I did the exact same thing a few days ago, and I trimmed those. I hadn't thought about keeping them for something else that day, and since I want to use up my scraps, I decided today, that I would just make new HST's and save the "wrong" size for another project.  So, here is today's block.

28 Jan

Yesterday, I got my 4 Patch border sewn onto my Stars for a New Day quilt.  I have to add two more floater borders to the outside, then it will be ready for the 3rd month's border. That one is going to be pinwheels, so more HST units for that quilt.    I am really liking the way this quilt is turning out.   It is going to be so much more colorful than what I usually make, and definitely more colorful than my 365 Challenge blocks are.  (I knew I had a lot of dark fabrics, and a lot of greens, blues and purples, but I never realized how much, until I started going through my scraps).  Right now, this one measures 30.5" and there are a lot more stars to make for this quilt, and most of them are using HST units.  I still have my saw tooth stars to make for the final border on this for the second month.  According to the instructions we make 8 a month, but since I'm doing this 10 years later, I will be making more than that as time allows.  As long as I get all 72 of them done when it's time to add them to the quilt, it's all good.  I don't plan on waiting for March to work on what was released in March when this was a BOM, so I will be getting this quilt done faster than one year.

4 Patch border Stars for a New Day

Well, that's all for now... time to get back to my machine and make some more HSTs

Until next time... Happy Crafting!!!

11 January

Today's block is a simple 16 patch.  I wanted to mix up the fabric for the patches, keeping the same fabric for the Dark Dark.  So I picked out 8 - 1.25" squares from my scrap bin, and sewed them to the length of the Dark Dark strip.  Cut them apart, then sewed 2 pairs together, then into a 4 patch, finally sewing 4 - 4 patches together.  I find this keeps thing straighter than trying to sew 4 squares in a row, and making 4 rows then sewing those rows together.

11 Jan

Yesterday, I got back to work on my Stars for a New Day, cutting up my different fabrics for some 4 Patches, and Sawtooth stars.   If I were doing this as a BOM, this work would be for February, but since I already have all the instructions, I can work on them as I have the time, with out waiting for the next months release.  I need 36 4 patches, they are going to be a border around the feathered star I already made.  The instructions call for 8 Sawtooth stars for February, however I will need a total of 72 by the time I'm finished with the quilt top.  So I decided that since I need all my fabrics out to make the 4 Patches, I will cut what I need for the Sawtooth stars, and in another month or so, I will need to make Pinwheel blocks, again out of all my different fabrics, so I'm cutting what I need for those while I have my fabric on my cutting table.  I couldn't resist making at least one star block!!  This is going to finish at 4", and was very easy to make, just squares and half square triangles.  I used my Triangulations paper to make the HST, since I need 8 HST for each star out of each color. 

And since I'm cutting out fabric for blocks I'm not ready to work on, I'm going to have to keep myself organized so I don't lose what I've already cut, or forget what the fabric was cut for.  Between getting organized for Stars for a New Day, and my 365 Challenge quilt, I might actually get into the habit of being more organized by the end of the year.  :-)

Until next time... Happy Crafting!!!

Stars for a New Day

Back in 2009 a website called The Quilt Show, released a Block of the Month project called Stars for a New Day. I remember making the feathered star for the center medallion at the time, but used fabric I wasn't thrilled with, and so didn't like the finished block. I enjoyed the process of making it, just not my fabrics. (If I can find that block, I will get a picture of it and add it, so you can see how bad my fabric choices were back then).

Over the years, I kept thinking about that quilt and really wanted to make it.  I just couldn't decide on a color scheme.  Last year, I decided I would use batiks for this quilt and started gathering fabrics to use.  I kept that fabric together in my craft room, so I wouldn't lose it in the black hole my craft room has become, but I couldn't seem to find the time to start working on it.  As the end of the year got closer, I kept getting that nagging feeling that I needed to start working on this quilt.  About the 2nd of January, I was headed to bed, but made a detour to my craft room, pulled out my fabric and started cutting what I needed for the first month's block.  I didn't cut all the pieces, just the amount I needed to get started off the yardage and kept it on my cutting table.  The next morning, when I woke up and got ready to start sewing for the day, I was able to start sub cutting my fabric into the sizes I needed, and start sewing.  5 days later I finished that feathered star.  I love how this turned out, it's going to be quite colorful, which is not my typical look.

It wasn't until a couple of days ago, that I realized that I started working on this 10 years after it was first released.  I didn't think any one else that is a member of The Quilt Show, is working on it at this time, although I have posted to the forum that I did start.  I think my post has inspired someone else to start working on theirs as someone responded that they are finally going to finish their quilt.  Maybe others will get inspired to start theirs, or pull it out of the UFO pile and get it finished.  It is the right time for me to be working on this project and I'm looking forward to seeing it all come together as I progress. 

If you want to get an idea of what the entire quilt looks like you can search Pinterest for "Stars for a New Day" and you will come up with all kinds of photos.  Or, check out TheQuiltShow.com, and look in the gallery for 2009 BOMs, there are all kinds of pictures from people making this quilt.  You do not need to be a member to see the photos.  However, you can become a member for free, and get access to most of the site.  IF you want to watch the shows that they offer, the membership is only $49.00 for a year, or if you prefer to pay monthly, $4.95 per month.  I believe they even have a one month trial, so you can check it out before you commit to a whole year.  I've been a member since they started all the way back in 2007 and while I haven't always watched all the shows, as a member I can go back and watch any show I like, so as my interests change, I can watch the shows that now interest me.  It's better than waiting for my local PBS station to play a quilting show, or searching the tv channels for quilting shows, and hoping that they talk about something I'm interested in.  And after having taped shows for 12 years, there are a lot of shows to choose from. 

Well, it's time to get back to work on my Wild and Goosey blocks for this week... only 65 more blocks to make to have enough for a quilt top, then I can start sewing them together in sets of 4 with sashing.

Until next time... Happy Crafting!!!

A Simple 9 Patch

Today's 365 Challenge is a simple 9 patch block.  But don't let the simplicity fool you.  If  you aren't accurate in your cutting, sewing and pressing, you can make your block either too small or too large.

Jan 5

I'm using this challenge to hone my skills in all aspects of quilting.  I want to make sure I cut accurately.  I want to test my seam allowance, and make sure it isn't too big or too small.  And when I'm pressing my seams, I want to make sure I'm not stretching my fabric, or getting tucks in my seam lines.  When you are making small blocks, the accuracy is even more important than if you were making larger blocks.  If you are off, even 1/16" in a 3 inch block, and you have 12 3" blocks in your row, you could be off by as much as .75" when you get your row sewn together, and if your next row is accurate, they won't fit together like they should.  So even a small discrepancy can add up over the size of the quilt.

To help me with my accuracy, I have started using glue to hold my small pieces of fabric together.  I found a product called Acorn Easy Precision Piecing Starter Kit.  It includes what they are calling Seam Align Glue.  You use just the smallest of drops in your seam allowance, and put your two fabrics together, and it holds it while you stitch.  If you need to take it apart, the glue releases from the fabric easily, with out distorting your fabric, and will wash out once you are finished with your quilt.  So it isn't going to stay in there forever.  The next part of the kit is Easy Press Solution and an Easy Press Pen.  You put the solution in the pen, and then apply it to your seam, press and your seam will lay flat!! 

I'm looking for alternatives to these products, since they are hard to find locally, and they aren't exactly cheap.  I think I may have found another glue that works just as well, but is not the Elmers School glue (although I have used that for some things as well).  I will post about that another time.

But for now, it's time to get back to sewing.  I'm starting another project that has been on my mind for a number of years.  It's The Quilt Show's 2009 BOM, Stars for a New Day.  I have loved that quilt since they first released it, but didn't have the time to spend on it.  Last year, I started gathering fabric for it, and today I'm starting on the center feathered star.  I will share pictures as I progress.  I also have more work to do on my Wild and Goosey blocks so I can get that quilt top together.  Only 68 more blocks to have enough for the lap sized quilt I want to make. 

Until next time...  happy crafting!!!