Autumn beauty............

My Viburnum bush is getting prettier every day.  I'm hoping to cut it back drastically so I have a better view of my back garden and the bird feeders.

The tree across the street was glowing in the late afternoon light.

This is the view looking south from my front door.  Erik's burning bush is more of a rosy red.

The Sedums have their last color before turning brown for the winter.  This is 2 different varieties.  The leaves are different and the flowers are tighter on the left plant.

I finished basting the colorwash last night so I'll start the quilting today.

Preparing to baste...........

On a gloomy dark and rainy day yesterday all I got done was preparing  this 40" square Colorwash wallhanging for basting.  We got another half inch of rain by yesterday morning at 8 a.m. and I will check this morning to see what the last 24 hour total is. 

#3 quilt top for October 2021.........

This quilt pattern is from Moda and called Simply Woven.  This one is 48" x 60".  While I was pressing the top I also pressed the backing, cut and seamed it and also cut the same fabric for the binding.  Maybe this will be the first finish for November.

I should have gone straight from that to finishing something else but instead I did some research on a new project.  Nancy from Blogging, Near Philadelphia gave me permission to start this one.  Check out her post where she is  starting her fourth quilt in this pattern.  It was in Kaffe's 1997 book and then in 2 books following that.  I have always liked this pattern and seeing her new blocks prompted me to get serious about it now.

I wasn't sure what fabrics to use and then I saw one through an internet search made with Marcia Derse fabric.  Many years ago when I bought my friend's MD fabric stash (older lines that I didn't have) she included some strips she had cut.  I went straight to that box to start piecing some strip sets.

I am not sure what I'm doing so far and will get into my stash and cut wider strips and then start playing.  I might wait until the first of November and use these last 3 days of October to finish something.

I got a new bird feeder (center) to replace an aging one.  It has 6 openings for the birds and I think it will be too slippery for the squirrels or chipmunks to hang onto.  I also got the baffle hanging on the post between the 2 left feeders to discourage a trip up the pole by the critters.  I know they can still jump that high but hope they will have a harder time raiding the feeders.

More progess.............

I sewed the last 4 blocks of this Moda Simply Woven quilt yesterday and pressed them and put them up on the design wall in the basement.  I only had to change a few and decided this layout was fine.

I stuck with it and sewed the blocks together and it is ready to be pressed today.

I found another fabric I like better for the backing for this quilt since there is a lot of pink and lavender in the blocks.  I have several pink fabrics to use as backings and need to start using them.

One of my quilting buddies sent me a Halloween postcard.  Tula Pink fabric.

Fall color across the street.  It sounds like we will get a hard freeze next week so the leaves will all be on the ground shortly.

Looking north on my street there is more color.  The tree on the left started turning almost 3 weeks ago and has lost about half of its leaves already.

 

16 out of 20.............

I still haven't taken the Bear Paw blocks off the design wall so the blocks are on the floor again.  I have 16 out of 20 finished.  I'm getting a little bored with the same fabrics over and over.  There are at least 25 different fabrics in it.

The last four blocks are ready to sew.

I have 2.5 yards of this batik that could be used for backing.  I'll look through my larger pieces that are in the basement later today for a lighter value choice.

I planted 3 Lenten Roses (Helebores) that Patty the Quilt Lady sent to me.  The one on the right doesn't show up very well but if you click on the photo and enlarge it I think you will see all three.  They are big healthy plants.  I sent her some Coral Bells, one dark purple and green leaf and several large lighter green leaf variety.  We're both always planting and maintaining our gardens.

 

Playing...............

I couldn't seem to concentrate on any one project yesterday.  I baked chocolate chip cookies and used almost all of my flour so I ended up grocery shopping and stocking up on things I will need in the next 2 months.

Last night I played with the squares made from quarter square triangles.  I mentioned a couple days ago that I might save them to use as spacers in a Kaffe orphan block quilt.  I had to check them out in a couple layouts though.

Ohio Star is always a nice block and would use up a big stack of 4.5" squares that I already cut a few years ago.  Enough playing, now I have to get busy.

On Sunday a huge storm rolled through and the final rain was on Monday morning.  I had 4.65" of rain in my rain gauge.  That is more rain than we had in August and September combined.  We were at an 8" deficit for the year so this rain should have brought that number down some.

 

Second quilt top finish in October 2021

I sewed the last 3 seams and pressed this 16 patch quilt top and did the staystitching around the edge.  I'm glad I spent a little more time with the layout because there were 2 areas that were bothering me and now I really like it.  It is Autumn Coneflower 2, a remake of a top that I sold back in 2013.  I didn't do an exact reproduction, just the general feel.  Here is the post with the original quilt.  I just realized I made this new quilt top one row longer than the original and I like the proportion better.

Last night I made 5 more blocks of the free Moda pattern Simply Woven and used more light colors.  It looks a lot better now.  I will pull more fabrics to finish up the next 10 blocks and it will be a small quilt 48" x 60".

 

Under the needle.............

I spent some time on the layout of Coneflower 2 yesterday and last night started sewing it together.  I just have 3 long seams left to sew.  It looks so pretty all piled up there.

I sorted all of the 4" quarter square triangles into colors and values.  These are all cut from scraps a couple months ago.  I started sewing some of them together yesterday morning.  No project in mind but they might be used as fillers in a Kaffe orphan block quilt top.

We're supposed to get a lot of rain today and tomorrow.  Our trees and bushes will love it. 

Off track again.............

I wasn't inspired to work on any of my current projects so I did a trial run on a free Moda pattern called Simply Woven Quilt.  A Left- Handed Quilter just finished a quilt top with this pattern using a jelly roll.  I have hundreds of 2.5" strips already cut so I just chose a group of blue, green, purple and rose and a light background print to try it out.  I can see I need a lot more light prints just a little darker than the background fabric to make this work.  My assortment is all too much alike in value.  This is similar to another quilt top I made a few months ago but this one has more strips per block creating the plaid and the block is 12.5".

Now I'll get back to work on my other projects so I can have some finished tops to report for this month.  I need to make a final decision on the layout of the Coneflower 16 patch blocks.

I mowed the front and side yard yesterday afternoon.  The temperature was in the high 50s so it was very comfortable.  Last night we had a chance of frost so I covered all of the tomato plants.  It is supposed to be in the 40s at night for the coming week.

 

Another possibility.............

I looked through my black with brown batiks one more time and found another that I think will work as alternate blocks with the 16 patch blocks.  I knew I had this fabric but it was hiding from me.

Yesterday morning I was looking out at the birdfeeders and noticed a bird with a white head eating seed on the ground.

Then it flew up to the bush right outside my kitchen window and I could see it was a parakeet.

It didn't mind mingling with the other birds so I suspect it escaped from its cage awhile ago and has grown comfortable with being outside.  A few years ago I saw a parakeet in my backyard but I don't remember what color it was.  I doubt this is the same one.

 

Working on the "other" projects............

I wasn't ready to take the Bear Paw blocks off the design wall yet so I got out the dust mop and cleaned up all of the dust bunnies so I could use the floor for photos.  This older project is sewn together now and is in the 40" x 64" range right now.  I have lots of the fabrics that are in it so I could add borders.  I'll think about this for awhile.

Here are the true colors in that one.  It looks like a fall quilt and it does have rust and beige in it but it also has purple, not brown.  There is purple in the lightest fabric too.

I try to always sew the whole quilt top on the same sewing machine but this one was started in the 1990s and I'm not sure which machine it was started on.  I'll blame my mismatched points on the fact that it was sewn on 2 different machines.

Most of the corners were matched a little better.

Next it was time to look at the alternate block fabric choices with the 16 patches.  They look so different in a photo than in real life so I'll have to go back and forth from floor to photo to analyze what is working best.  I like the elephant fabric a lot but there isn't enough of it for all of the alternate squares.

 

20 blocks...........

I made blocks 18, 19 and 20 yesterday and worked on the layout last night.  I keep forgetting to bring an extra light upstairs to brighten the bottom of the design wall.

I sewed block #18 while the 2 plumber guys were in my basement installing my new water heater. 

I decided to put blue long rectangles in this block with the olive green.  It is one of my favorite blocks. #19 (bottom row, right corner)

I got #20 sewn last night and then I worked on the layout for about an hour.  Half of the blocks have light rectangles and half have dark rectangles. (second from left on bottom row, close up shows true brightness)

Now I have to find a fabric for the narrow sashing and cornerstones.

 

Just pieces and parts...........

I cut more pieces for the remaining 3 Bear Paw blocks and did some auditioning.  I think this one is working so I will sew it.

I found a nice olive green print for the large squares of another block and this brown print has some green in it.  The corners are many shades of olive green and I'm not sure I'll use it.  I may want light corners.  To be determined at a later time.

I started cutting down and digging out the remaining Rose of Sharon bushes on the north side of my house.  My son will have to cut down some with a saw because the trunk is too large for my loppers.  

 

Not quite done...........

I didn't spend a lot of time on the layout yesterday.  The only thing I decided was that I need another blue accent in a block.

Since I didn't have any more Bear Paw blocks ready to sew I pressed the sewn stratas for the 16 patches and sliced the segments and sewed 20 blocks, these 10 and their duplicates.

I noticed my Viburnum bush was changing color so I grabbed my camera.  My little 4 year old neighbor girl was following me around and chatting with me.

The contrast is so pretty between the rose color leaves and the green ones.

 

Bear Paw blocks 16 and 17.........

I am down to slim pickings in the precut pieces for the Bear Paw blocks.  This is the first block with the four larger squares all different.

This block is a bright one.  I need to press the last 5 blocks now and work on a layout. That will give me some idea what color and value the last 3 blocks need to be.

I mowed the grass yesterday, the first time since September 10th.  I mowed twice in beginning of August.  It has been very dry since the middle of August and there was as much brown grass as green.  Now with all of the rain the last 2 weeks I only have a couple small patches of brown grass and the grass was tall.  Most of the mowing from here on will be to chop up leaves which are starting to fall.

 

Bear Paw progress..............

I really like this Bear Paw block.  The fabric in the long rectangles is one of my favorite gold fabrics.  It's a fairly large print but cuts up nicely.

This gives me 12 blocks if I want to stop there.

Since I still had so many pieces already cut I made some more blocks.  I can either make the quilt larger or choose the best 12 for a smaller quilt.

I haven't pressed these last 3 blocks yet so the corners are curling.  I love the print in the large squares in this one.

This one wouldn't lay flat for its photo and will look much better when it is pressed.

And finally, here is the view from the sewing chair.  I will need 5 more blocks if I decide to make a 20 block quilt.  The blocks are 14" and I probably will put narrow sashing between the blocks like I did on the batik one I made earlier this year and showed here on Tuesday's post.