Aqua Dresden blocks

So another UFO will become a top. It's about halfway sewn. I'm keeping the 9 patch blocks but changed up the sashing color.

Im just glad to be getting this done. These blocks were started in 2011...I KNOW! So many old unfinished projects at my house😱 Well, this one was always in the back of my mind. I had loads of different ideas over the years of how to set the aqua blocks.

A few days ago I decided that it was prettiest with red. I had made the nine patches (nine 3-1/2" squares to make a 9-1/2" block )...my sister said keep them so I am.  But I'm glad I switched the sashing color. 

I love the dresdens and I feel like they're taking a backseat in this quilt...but I really dont want to start over-thinking this...otherwise this will end up back in the box for more years. 

One thing I'm happy I did was cut the back away from the dresdens...it cuts out some of the bulk. When it comes time to quilt it, it'll be much easier. I used papers from PaperPieces.com to make the dresdens. AND the papers were left in as I appliqued to make it easy to cut away the back without cutting the dresden flower. 

For the sashing, I cut white, red, dark blue, yellow and medium blue and tested them all out. The yellow and white were just too boring. The red and dark blue made the sashing jump out too much. The medium blue was perfect. So now I'm putting this together as a top.

After 11 years, it feels good to be working towards a finish. This will probably just get put on top of the QUILT TOPS pile but thats progress. Next year I can concentrate on quilting tops👍😁

 

Ocean Waves

Today I had a chance to work on two quilts. This #OceanWavesQuilt top is finished. I put the final rows on then dug around for a scrap of white for the border. The perfect piece was on I picked up at a thrift store not long ago. This was a really fun top to make. It used up quite a few pretty scraps and lots of different whites. 

The #rainbowscrapchallenge was the perfect excuse to try out the Ocean Wave pattern. And making it 7 blocks at a time (7 per month) made it painless. I think I'd like to make one more but this time in the traditional blue & white.

 So after finishing up that top, I spent a little time trying to decide on how to set these dresden blocks. They've been packed away for years and really need to be put into a quilt. I'm still not sure the above setting works for the aqua blocks. The red seems to strong and takes away from the dresdens. So I might not use them...anyone have any ideas or opinions? I only have 16 dresdens. I know I want them on point...just not sure what colors are the best to use with the aqua. My sister says keep it as it is. If I do and dont like the finished product, she'll be the new owner😂

September blocks

 

The color for September (for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge) is blue but since I had already made blue blocks, I decided I'd do brown. I know, I said I don't really care for brown but I needed one more color in this quilt. It was between gray, brown and black. Black seemed to intense and gray not strong enough so I did warm browns. 

I also made one more of green, orange and pink. That gave me enough blocks for a small quilt. I'm going to sew the blocks together now then give it a nice wide white border and then.. ? ...Maybe one more border after that of HSTs.... Or maybe just a bright binding. 

I also made one brown "Building Blocks" block and one in gray. I have a total of 10 of those. They're getting packed away until January. Next year I'll do 10 more, then set them on point for another rainbow quilt. I'm getting quite a collection of rainbow quilts. One is going to a great neice (one already did) and one is for me to keep. No idea what I'll do with the rest. They're just such bright and fun tops to make. 

Sewing on the road

Al and I are on our way to my brother's farm in the U.P. of Michigan. They called us to say they needed help with the harvest...which means they've canned all they are able to and would like us to haul tomatoes and other stuff back home. I usually can tomatoes into sauce each year because my husband (being Italian) requests spagetti about once a week. We go through a LOT of sauce!

So yesterday I dug through my 30's for scraps to for the tumbling blocks quilt so that I could work on it as we travel.

I have quite a few 30's reproductions and originals, that I've collected over 20 years or so. I'm trying to use up all the small pieces in this quilt. And if I need some color that isn't a scrap, I'm cutting one. 

Having these papers cut and pinned to fabric makes basting so much quicker. I prepped about 25 of these diamonds then grabbed a stack of scraps so that I'm not bored in the evening up there.

We are on the road, I'm sewing, he's driving...both of us doing what we love best!

 

September Sewing

The weather has been a little cooler and overcast, so I've been in the sewing room working on my four #rainbowscrapchallenge quilts.

This "Ocean Waves" quilt top is just about done. I'm sewing the last few rows on.

The Birds in the Air blocks are on the floor. I realized I need more of them for a decent quilt so I'm making a few extras. I'd like it at least large enough to use as a toddler quilt.

See those log cabin blocks on the wall? That's there to remind me to do a bit of work on it each day. It's a VERY old UFO and needs to be finished. The center was from a lone star quilt I started then changed my mind about. I like it much better in the center of these blocks. 

I haven't touched it yet this week...it's so hard to switch to dreary colors after playing with all these brights. 

But I'm planning on sewing some today...after I make a few more HST blocks.

The "Building Blocks", below, are going to be set on-point. I only made one each month so I think I'll put these away for the start of the next Rainbow Scrap Challenge in 2023. I'd like to have 20 blocks so 10 this year, 10 next. Looks like I need to make a gray block before I pack it up.

Well, that's where I'm at right now. Still doing my hand quilting everyday (most days) and piecing the tumbling blocks EPP quilt top.

 

August orange blocks

This is the start of ORANGE blocks for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. I've been running behind since getting sick in July. Last week I finished up the purple blocks and now I'm rushing to get orange ones done. 

 Summer has been super busy with good and bad things going on. But now that fall is on the horizon, it's"catch-up" time. Al and I are hoping to take a trip back up north to visit my brothers on the farm. They called to say the veggies are in ...lots of tomatoes for canning. Fall usually starts with canning tomatoes for pasta sauce and this year will be the same. Al loves his pasta dinners! I'd also like to can some apple pie filling and some Jalepeno relish. We're both watching our sugar consumption but a little treat here and there wont hurt (jam and relishes are included in the treat category). Al's sugar is too high and my inflammation was getting bad so that's the reason for the diet change. It's definitely helping. Well, that's it for now❤