Scrappy and growing Strip and Slash

It's growing - this is my "Design Floor"  This project is a bit over half way lengthwise, and the width is done.  I LOVE how the small pieces, despite the colors used  just blend into each other, especially when one uses small pieces.  There is a seafoam green that pops, and the gold also stands out.  My dark colors are browns, greens, purples, eggplant (maroon) a few checks, a few polka dots, only a bit of blues but no reds.  On the light side, a LOT of plain pastels, pale turquoise, pinks, a few soft oranges and yellows.   I didn't purchase anything for this quilt.   Despite the word "Scrappy", which I ALWAYS make, I do plan my colors and values to some degree, but I am not fussy.  That's me, "not fussy Elaine Adair." 

This is a Strip and Slash, by Jackie Robinson, and as I've previously noted, the entire project is a "method".  I LOVE her pressing plans that ensured the blocks would fit together.  When completed, and putting blocks into rows, it's not possible to have them all pressed perfectly because the options are many.  The pieces are very small -- each block is only 3.75 inches and I have close to 300 ?? HST blocks.

Here are some Quilt Pro options.  I liked the first one, but thought I'd go crazy trying to follow it and the design would be lost on this small quilt.  Second one has several possibilities, but I chose the third (below) because from far away it looks like squares on point, but when close up, the viewer will be drawn closer to see they are all very small pieces that create the illusion, and also because stars appear. 

I'll probably add a border or two.

Blizzard for Mother's Day

Spring  2015 Mothers Day, May 10.  It's somewhat subsided now, Yesterday evening and last night was a real blizzard, preceded by 3 inches of much wanted rain.  The snow accumulated to about 10 inches.  My lawn is/WAS lovely green, poppies WERE about to bloom, I had just weeded some of my gardens, I had been sitting on the deck enjoying bluebirds and finches on the feeder ...

I caused it all, by moving the snow shovel from the deck to the garage a few days ago. 

GREATS, Strip and Slash, GFG (Grandmother's Flower Garden)

We had young guests over the weekend - 2 1/2, and 10.  We are out of practice with little ones!  These are greatgrandkids.

This one  (below) is not a kid -- he is the great grandfather!  totally engaged in a game of rubber band shooting.  I was waiting for "someone" to land on the floor, but nothing critical happened, except that all my rubber bands are gone.  There is a 10 yr. old out of sight in this photo!

OK, now for more "great stuff", here is the beginning of the layout I chose for my latest 300 or so blocks of split 9-patches.  This is an entire "method" from Jackie Robinson, "Strip and Slash".  I've made it 3 times previously.  These blocks are small, about 3.75 inches.  

 and .... I have become addicted, as previously posted.  I think I have 30 rosette blocks so far.  Again, I have to say, these are not as hard as we have been led to believe.  I invested in a paper punch for perfect paper forms, which made the job so much easier and precise.  These hexagons finish at 1 inch (length of each of the 6 sides).    I stuck with a lot of pinks and blues.  Since I am sitting waaay more than I used to, trying to watch/find something decent on TV, I am using my time for something  useful. 

OK, one more thing.  I've had to change browsers from IE to Firefox for posting on this blog.  For some reason, I couldn't "sign out" from my Gmail account to access my Yahoo account which is what I use for Blogger -- just another one of those mysteries.  Thank you to several of you who made that suggestion.  

Today, off to Walmart for a Wi-Fi printer.  Oh dear, another mystery that requires courage!

Enthusiasm for Hexagons

After a delightful visit to a not-too-far Quilt Show, I came home with enthusiasm for Hexies!  I have no idea how they will be used.  Right now, I'm enjoying looking at them!     

 

That punch is from Fiskars (under $10.00), an accurate paper punch that I found invaluable for making the papers.  I would NOT do this project without that tool! It doesn't work on plastic, or Mylar, or fabric, only heavy paper, aka as junk mail.  Use the dull paper card stock - shiny is slippery.  My method:  punch a bunch of papers, then with a regular office-type paper punch,  make a hole near the center of each paper (for removal later), take a square chunk of fabric (don't worry about accuracy here - just make it large enough), wrap it around one side at a time, and take 2 stitches from the back.  Then, without cutting your thread, go to the next corner, fold the fabric over the paper edge and take a stitch, folding neatly at each corner, etc.  After fabric is neatly affixed to the paper, trim the extra from the back with a sharp scissors.  MESSY bits everywhere, but you might want to hand quilt these little jewels.  Those stitches stay in -- they do not go thru the paper, only thru the folded fabric.  I used quilting thread.  The used papers are removed with tweezers, or pointed tool, when it was needed to sew on the next hexie and many of them can be used again. 

 

There are many methods, this was mine.  These hexies finish at 1 1/4 inch, even though the punch size is called LARGE.  Note - they are not as difficult as we have been led to believe.  I did 4 rosettes in 2 days of too-much-TV.  These hexies are a perfect take along project.  All the supplies fit in that little tin box to the left of the photo. 

 

My fumble fingers learned the technique quickly.

 

The plastic bag has hundreds of punched papers - I had fun with the punch!     

 

QOV, Done!

Done, done, done, but I'll still wash it before mailing it off.  I LOVE having a place to hang my quilts for photos.

Below - I added a narrow red flange before the binding, for a little big "extra".  Since I had so many curly designs in the center, I used plain straight lines in the border.  Goodness, look what the camera did to my blue fabric border!  The design was a subtle diagonal black line on blue!  8-)))

 

Yeah, I can start on another project! 

QOV Quilting - Pinwheels and 4-Patches





Machine quilting -  I started with one overall design, and it morphed into another, and then another and then another - no self-discipline!  There are lots of curves, spirals, banana-type fill-ins, and then I got really crazy and started making sun rays erupting from paisleys -- they are my favorite!   All of this quilting is done with the original quilting foot that came with my Janome 6500 MC, a standard DSM.

 

However, a surprise occurred near the end of this project.  On a whim, I again tried to use/learn to use the 3 combination feet for a low shank Janome.  I made up a practice sandwich, and didn't experiment on my nice QOV.  Until today, I have had NO success using these feet, and was totally disgusted with that purchase.  The only thing I've done differently today, is that I used Sewer's Aid on my thread, and tried the feet for at least the 6th time, and voila!!!!  HOOOORRRAYYYY!  I've had to do some eating CROW following this happy surprise.  I MQ'd 2 of the borders on the QOV with no problems at all. Go figure!   

 

The quilting toned down my backing stripes a bit.  I LIKE it and didn't purchase anything more. 

 They look good together.