Beginning to cut.............

After finding enough choices for the border rectangles on the floral quilt, I had to press all of the fabrics.  I got pieces cut from 9 of the fabrics.  I have 26 pieces here and I need 36.  I will be over-cutting so that I have plenty of choices when I do the layout of them on the perimeter.  I'm going to use mostly dark fabrics so the integrated border will show up slightly as a frame.  

Since I wasn't ready to sew the top yet, I finished knitting another dishcloth last night.  This is a newer color that I hadn't used yet.  I buy the Super Size balls of yarn and I can get 3 dishcloths from one ball.

Today is predicted to be 51 degrees.  A week from today 21 is predicted for a high.  I will need to do a walk around my yard and gardens today and see if there is anything else I need to take care of.  I will probably cut down the Annabelle Hydrangea by my back picture window.  I will leave the one in front of the house as is and cut it down in the spring.  The Zinfin Doll Hydrangea will get pruned in late winter/early spring.

An idea......................

Since this quilt is going to end up so small I had been thinking about a border.  Yesterday I came up with the idea of a pieced border like I have done on other quilts.  The pieces will be cut 3.5" x 6.5" out of a variety of floral fabrics.  I will piece them at the same time as the quarter square triangle blocks (webbing) so I didn't get anything sewn together yesterday.  I'll start cutting today.

I got 2 quilts back yesterday so I have some trimming to do and a search for a binding fabric for the neutral color batik 16 patch.  I'm going to use the leftover backing fabric for the confetti quilt binding.

We had snow Thursday and now 50s predicted for Sunday and Monday.  Below freezing weather is going to start next Friday so I think our warm days will be over.  

 

First layout of QST blocks................

My son and daughter in law came over yesterday and gave me my belated birthday present, help cleaning the garage.  What would have taken me a week and lots of indecision got done in 3 hours.  They also brought beef/barley soup and I baked some beer bread.

Last night, even though I was tired I decided to get all 80 blocks up on the design wall.  Half of the blocks have a dotted triangle and 3 florals, the other half have 4 floral triangles.  I alternated the 2 kinds of blocks which resulted in the dotted triangles all being in a vertical position. I see 2 light and one dark pinwheel as it is now. I have options.  1. Sew it just as it is and be done with it.  2.  Exchange block positions and create some dotted pinwheels.  3.  Play a little more and create more light pinwheels.

This quilt is one to be enjoyed close up, not one that has a focal point.  It just makes me happy to see all of the floral fabrics together.

20 additional blocks.....................

Last night was a productive time.  I got 20 more blocks sewn for a total of 80 blocks now.  With an 8 x 10 layout the quilt would measure 48" x 60".

Here are the other 60 blocks.  I can start working on the layout of the quilt now.

We're supposed to get our first snowfall today but the temperature will probably go high enough in the afternoon to melt all of it.  I brought my pots of Begonias and Geraniums into the garage.  I also pulled the 2 Geraniums from the pots on the porch steps and will keep them in the garage over the winter.

 

15 of 60 blocks................

Last night I sewed all of the rest of the quarter square triangle blocks that I had ready.  This is one of each of four blocks alike.  They are only 6" blocks so 60 blocks would only make a quilt 36" x 60".

I pressed all 60 blocks.

I had a bag of odds and ends of floral fabrics so I went through it and pulled several that are big enough to cut the quarter square triangles.  All of these are pressed now so I can do some cutting today.

I have been showing photos of the cacti by the east picture window but now I have some blooming by the west picture window.  The pale pink is one of my favorite plants.

The pale pink on the left here is from the same plant.  It is a piece that broke off a few years ago and I rooted it.  A couple of the buds are opening on it too.

I have another small champagne color one that is blooming over by the east window.  I love my indoor winter garden.  I say that every year..............

 

4 more..................

There are 16 more blocks sewn, 4 alike of 4 different combinations of fabric.  I searched for more fabrics to cut while I did laundry yesterday morning.

I also cut more of the 2" finished triangles from the waste fabric.  Now I wish I knew what I did with the first stack.  I know I had them upstairs when I took a photo of them a few days ago and then I carried them to the basement to look for a small storage box.  I didn't find a box but.....where did I put the triangles?

Rain most of the day yesterday and more overnight.  I'll check the rain gauge when it all stops. 

Finally.......some sewing...............

There are 4 blocks alike of each combination of 4 quarter square triangles.

I put one of each of the combinations that are already sewn up on the design wall.  I was sure I was going to get more sewn in 2 hours but just 24 blocks are done.  

I spent the morning yesterday outside finishing the tomato plant clean up.  It took a long time to cut all of the long branches off the SunGold tomato plant.  They were about 6-8 feet long and tangled with each other.  I couldn't believe the size of the roots on that tomato plant.  I have all of the cages stacked for the winter, all of the tall stakes in the corner of my yard tool closet.  There are lots of tomatoes that fell to the ground in the raised bed so I'm hoping there will be some volunteer plants again next year. 

And still cutting..................

This is one of each of the 6" finished floral squares.  There are 4 of almost all of them so I think I have 150 cut so far so I need 9 more fabrics (or duplicates) if I make 4 quilts.  I'm considering dropping one of my ideas and then I would only need 5 more. No final decisions at this point.

I need 13 more sets of 3" triangles and I can get then out of some of the smaller pieces of fabric.

Meanwhile I still haven't cleaned off the cabinet top so I haven't been able to start sewing the quarter square triangle blocks.  That is on my list today.

The champagne color cacti took its time for the first buds to bloom.

I have now added a birthday bouquet to the table of blooming cacti.

Still cutting.................

I had a stack of fabrics to press before I could continue cutting 6.5" squares.  I got 13 more cut with a pile waiting to go to the die cutter.  There are 4 squares of each of most of these fabrics.  There are 2 or 3 quilts in the future to use all of them.  I will need 177 squares if I make all 3 quilts and I have 96 cut so far.

I'm also cutting 3" finished half square triangles for one of the quilts.  Lots more strips are also waiting to be die cut for this group.

I lived on a dairy farm when I was little and we had 2 hired men at different times who could help with the milking and crops.  I went to grade school with their kids.  One of them was a girl named Rose Marie who was in first grade with me.  Her brother passed earlier this year and I read in his obit that she lived in a town just 8 miles from me.  I doubt she remembered me but I always thought she had a pretty name and I remembered her.  Her obit was in the newspaper yesterday.  That's the thing about being 84, a lot of old acquaintances are showing up in the newspaper, 3 in the last 5 weeks.

Cutting................

I need to start cleaning up the floral fabrics on my table in the basement.  One (or two) other quilts need to be cut so I started with the 6.5" squares.  There are duplicates of some of these so there are 42 squares cut so far.

I also got the fabrics I showed yesterday cut into quarter square triangles.  I have to move all of the triangles off my sewing cabinet so I can sew again.

Another daylight photo in the morning in my living room, so you can see it was even more overcast yesterday.  I found another plant in full bloom, another white one so I moved it over to the coffee table with the others. 

Not much progress....................

I got a few strips cut for quarter square triangles while I did a load of laundry.  I didn't get any farther, too much else needed to be taken care of.  Thanks to everyone who weighed in on my dotted fabric question yesterday.

It was a cloudy day yesterday with rain late in the day.  I took this photo with just the daylight coming in the east picture window.  The medium rose plant has some blooms and the champagne color in the striped pot should be blooming today.

84 years, didn't that used to sound old?  Like ancient?  I'm just happy I can still do what I love to do.

Adding dots?...................

I have purchased Kaffe Fassett "Spot" fabric over the years as he keeps adding new colors.  I thought maybe they might work with the floral fabrics.

I guess I won't know unless I try it.  I pressed the fabrics and cut some triangles.

I changed out some of the florals with dotted fabric.  I have lots more cutting to do so I can think about this.  Any opinions?

There was a waste triangle at each end when I cut the quarter square triangles and it was the right size to cut a 2" half square triangle.  I will start a mini storage box with these triangles and no project is in mind for them yet.

Still searching and cutting................

I thought maybe I should add more light triangles for this quilt so I added a Philip Jacobs floral.

Here are the rest of the triangles that wouldn't fit on the table.  I only have enough triangles cut to make into 48 blocks so far.  That would only make a quilt 36" x 48" so I have a long way to go.

I went though more Philip Jacobs fabric and the group of Lille which Kaffe did the coloration for.  I think these 5 are going to work.

I spent about 3 hours outside yesterday picking the rest of the tomatoes (50 or more) and then cutting up the gangly tomato plants, pulling up cages and putting them in storage.  I was so tired last night that I just spent some time knitting.  I finished this green dishcloth and love how it looks with this Philip Jacobs floral.

Then I started a new denim blue dishcloth and knitted 10 rows on the variegated purple one.  I like more than one in progress and may start another one today.

Today is only supposed to go up to high 40s so I doubt if I will go out to finish up the tomato plant cleanup.  I had 13 plants this year.
  

 

Busy, busy.....................

Back in mid-June I was sorting my floral fabrics to prepare some for a de-stash sale.  I had 2 stacks that I was keeping and I finally got around to cutting them.  First I cut an 11" strip off every piece that was large enough.

There is enough length in this group to cut another strip if necessary.

This group was shorter lengths or had squares cut out of them from the time I was making my Kaffe Seed Packet quilt.  I can still get cuts from them, just not as many as I will get from the larger pieces.

One fabric has several yards and was too precious to cut.  It might end up being a border.

Last night I die cut 6" quarter square triangles from two 4" cuts off the 11" pieces.  There are 116 so far, not enough for a project.

This is what I am going to do with them.  I will cut more triangles from the small pieces of fabric first.

I kept calling this quilt pink/gray and comments kept coming in calling the dot black and white.  Here is the dot laying on a black background....see, it really is gray.  The camera wants to make a high contrast between the gray and the pink and that is why it was deceiving.  Sorry for the confusion.

Strata cut and sewn................

I sliced the strata that was sewn into a tube and unpicked a seam in a different place on each of the 20 slices.  This is the layout on the design wall before I started sewing them together.

I decided I will make 2 table runners and have sewn one together.  It lost 4.5" in width with the seams sewn (compared to the layout).

Many of my cactus plants have buds and I saw the first blooms yesterday.  This is a piece I saved off a dying white cactus 2 years ago.

I decided to move the other two that are closest to blooming over to the coffee table to join the white one.  One of them is a champagne color and the other a deep rose.  After I took this photo I moved a pale pink one over there too.

#2 finish for November 2024

"Memories - 1956" is finished, just a couple months after I made the quilt top.  The gray dotted fabric is a Kaffe Fassett fabric, "Spot", the pinks are Kaffe's and Tula Pink's fabrics.  It is 64.5" x 76.5".

The backing fabric is by Kaffe Fassett also.  The batting is Hobbs 80/20 and it was quilted by my longarm friend, Robin.

I think the stripe with flowers worked really well for binding.  It is also a Kaffe fabric.  I just realized I didn't rotate this photo.

I hadn't checked the tomato plants for a few days and was surprised how many tomatoes were ripening.  Most of these will need a few days on the windowsill.

I picked 2 large green ones from the Big Beef plant by the driveway last week and they are both ripening nicely now too.  I didn't end up working outside much yesterday.  I did a load of laundry and then I had a friend coming over to choose 2 baby quilts.  Afterwards I went out to buy bird seed because it was on sale.  I filled the bird feeders which had been empty for 2 days....empty because of the squirrels.  They have to work a little harder to get the seed now so I'm only having to fill the feeders about twice a week.