Pantone from Julie

August Pantone blocks from Julie
August Pantone blocks from Julie

Friend Julie has been diligently handing me groups of blocks whenever I see her.

Here is the latest batch. While it may look paltry compared to my bonanza, keep in mind that she has been keeping up and I haven’t. She gives me a few at a time whereas I procrastinate by making bags. I tried to work on a block or two during my lunch hours and after work. That works pretty well when I have the colors already matched to the postcards.

Slow Scrappy Celebration Progress

Scrappy Celebration, E4
Scrappy Celebration, E4

I set myself a goal during the past two weekends of making progress on this quilt. I didn’t make much progress, but progress is progress.

First, I made this orange block. There is a little too much orange in it and I may change the centers of the mini-9 patches to something else. Maybe blue like in G2. We’ll see how I feel.

 

Scrappy Celebration, E8
Scrappy Celebration, E8

I really like this block. I think I might have made all of them the pattern calls for, but I really like it. I may have to make more. I kept looking at D6 and wanting to make the same block with the center and corner fabrics reversed. I really like that violet and the emerald green. I don’t use a lot of green in my quilts, so that is odd. I might like this block, because I get to use big amounts of that Shaggy Chrysanthemum print.  That is definitely a favorite even thought those autumn colors aren’t my normal colors.

Yes, I am making the blocks that are the easiest to get as many of them done as possible. Then I get mad at myself for being ridiculous and make a block with a lot of pieces. None of these blocks are difficult; some of them just have a lot of pieces.

Scrappy Celebration - August 2023
Scrappy Celebration – August 2023

In total, I made 5 blocks. I am now up to 28/56 total. I have enough blocks completed to make a good sized lap quilt, which is what I will do if (when) I run out of background fabric.

 

 

Pantone Project August Progress

I took a break from making bags, Metro Twist and Scrappy Celebration to make some progress. Thus, I made some good progress over the weekend on making Pantone blocks. 

Pantone Mutt & Jeff Left
Pantone Mutt & Jeff Left

I had already chosen quite a few fabrics, which made the task easier. Foundation piecing, not my strength, gave me pains on the first block.

The background of this fabric, a Martha Negley fruit and floral print from a few years ago, was the right hue for Pantone 4545 (not all the colors have names. Some only have numbers, which is a little annoying). I only had a half yard of this fabric and these fruit and florals don’t always have a lot of background. In this case, I only had a few bits to work with.

Martha Negley Fruit & Floral for Pantone 4545
Martha Negley Fruit & Floral for Pantone 4545

Of course, I cut a piece that was the wrong shape (remember: foundation piecing needs backwards and upside down pieces), so I had to Swiss cheese cut the last bit of background. Sigh. Fortunately, I don’t have enough of this to use for a back or a bag, so it really shouldn’t matter. Still it is painful to see one of these prints with a hunk out of the middle. Fortunately, this project (and Friend Julie) are worth it.

As an aside, you know how Tula Pink is doing Deja Vu prints? I wish Free Spirit would do them for Martha Negley as well. Maybe I should start fan club for Martha? I love those fruit and veg prints.

I went to town making blocks. I got into a rhythm that was only interrupted by not having selected anymore fabric. I thought I made a wider variety, but, looking at them like this, apparently not.

Storm Corner in Pantone 3985
Storm Corner in Pantone 3985

I was planning to make Flying Geese for Pantone 3985, a kind of olive green, but ran out of fabric. When I selected the fabric, I didn’t realize I only had about half of a fat quarter, so mid-block, I pivoted and made another Storm Center, which would work with the size triangles I had already cut.

I needed a template, so I cut the Pirate Black Storm Corner so I could use the triangles as a template, thus I ended up with four of these. In the grand scheme of the whole quilt it will be ok. It just looks a little odd now.

 

Pantone colors left to make
Pantone colors left to make

I suppose I shouldn’t have called this “August Progress” as it assumes I won’t make any additional progress, though I hope I do. I still have a number of colors to match and turn into blocks. Note they are all kind of dull, though looking at them like this reminds me they are not all beige.

I am also happy I made some good progress as I was feeling quite guilty at my tardiness. The hardest part of this project is selecting the fabrics. Aside from hauling the fabric bins down from the top of the fabric closet, the inks on the postcards seem to be different from the dyes used in fabric. I know that is true, however the actual hues and shades seem to be really different.

Half Hexie Star Top Finished

Half Hexie Star Top complete
Half Hexie Star Top complete

I finished this top last night! I am pretty excited even though I still have a long way to go to finish it.

I rushed to get a photo as I went to bed, so it isn’t the best photo. You can see some of the details in the post I published before.

I have been working on this quilt since August of 2012! I thought I had started it in 2016. Time really flies.

I can’t tell you how pleased I am to have made it this far! Assuming I can get the piece prepped to be quilted and make a date with Colleen, I will enter this in the President’s Challenge for the guild.

More Scrappy Celebration

I made a few more Scrappy Celebration blocks last week when I was off of work. I think they are coming out nicely. The colors are an interesting combination.

Scrappy Celebration D6
Scrappy Celebration D6

I really like the way this 9 Patch/ 4 Patch combination came out.

I was really good about making several of these blocks last week, but have been off my game on them since the weekend.

More Scrappy Celebration

Scrappy Celebration - early July 2023
Scrappy Celebration – early July 2023

I am working to make ongoing progress on the Scrappy Celebration. I now have two full rows and ideas for more blocks.

I made the 9 Patch with large center with a different fabric this time. I wanted to do it before and I may switch this particular block with the D2 block. I was inspired by the other 9 Patches within a 9 Patch block to use the orange for the larger patches.

Scrappy Celebration Continues

It is a good thing that I chose good fabrics for this quilt, because the piecing is super easy and not interesting. I don’t know if it was the best choice for my ‘next project’ after finishing most of my UFOs. Still, it is a project and I will continue.

The Philip Jacobs Chrysanthemum print in those Autumn colors is really growing on me.

I have decided to use the Chrysanthemum print in the same block design, combined in different ways throughout the quilt. I may use it in other blocks, but primarily, I will use it in that block design.

Scrappy Celebration C3
Scrappy Celebration C3

I am not 100% on board with my first use (C3) of it when I used the same fabric in the center as I did in the Four Patches. I like the one above much better. The combination of the colors in the Chrysanthemum print and the turquoise is stunning.

So far, I have made 18 blocks of the 56 I need. I think this will be quite the large quilt.

Peggy the Miracle Quilt Top Maker

Peggy's Sawtooth Star
Peggy’s Sawtooth Star

The other day I showed some red and dot donation blocks. I brought them to hand in at sew day and Peggy immediately grabbed them. Very quickly, she came up with a block with my donation blocks at the center.

This is such a cheerful block. I love the way she used HSTs instead of Flying Geese to vary the color of the rays of the star.  I would say the block is probably 16″ in this form, but I didn’t measure.

Sawtooth Star donation top
Sawtooth Star donation top

As the day wore on, Peggy continued to work. Midafternoon, she came up and showed me the quilt top made with my block at the center.

I know I say this all the time. I love this about the guild community quilt program. I can hand in something half finished and Peggy or someone will take it and make something fabulous.

I wonder if the Spiky 16 Patch #5 inspired her?

This is such a cheerful quilt top and was very quickly finished. It will also be good for a boy or a girl.

More Scrappy Celebration Blocks

Scrappy Celebration - late June 2023
Scrappy Celebration – late June 2023

I focused on getting some more blocks done for Scrappy Celebration over the weekend. My design wall is looking good even if I have to layer some of the blocks. I do need to move them all up and will probably do that today.

 

More Julie Pantone Blocks

Pantone Project blocks from Julie April 2023
Pantone Project blocks from Julie April 2023

After the meeting on the weekend, I cleaned out the Chubby Charmer I take to the meeting and found a bunch of stuff leftover from Retreat in the bottom. Among the items was a bunch of Pantone Project blocks that Julie made. She must have handed them over at the Retreat.

This group looks very Fallish/Autumn-like to me.

I feel terrible that they have languished unremarked upon for weeks. My only explanation is that I left for a business trip only a few days after I returned from the Retreat and really didn’t do a great job of putting everything away.

I have some fabrics chosen for some blocks for Julie and I am determined to get some done.

More Blocks for Scrappy Celebration

9 Patch with large center #2
9 Patch with large center #2

After encouraging my sewjo a little bit with the Spiky 16 Patch, I made some more blocks for the Scrappy Celebration quilt.

I have to admit I was dreading this block a little bit because the first one took so long to sew. I concentrated on chain piecing this one and it went more quickly.

I did forget to use the other blue fabric, so it looks the same as #1. Still, it is done and I can move on to other blocks.

Plus block #2
Plus block #2

I also made the second Plus block, which completes the top row. Unlike the 9 patch above, I have decided to make the Plus blocks different colors. Well, I have decided that the pluses will be different colors. I have been longing to use that emerald green again, so here it is.

I like the combination of the red-violet and that emerald.

Scrappy Celebration blocks - June 2023
Scrappy Celebration blocks – June 2023

I moved some of the blocks around so the completed block layout I have looks different now.

Not a lot of progress, but over a small hump and progress is progress.

Metro Twist

Metro Twist** is another pattern by Sew Kind of Wonderful that uses their Quick Curve Ruler**. You might remember that I made Metroscape** a few years ago with this ruler.

I showed the quilt that Amy made at the Retreat using the Metro Twist pattern in a previous post.The colors she used and the curves made this a very popular project at the Retreat.

Amy's Metro Twist
Amy’s Metro Twist

At the last Sew Day, she was putting on borders and preparing the top for quilting. I was able to take a photo of the quilt and it looks great!

I didn’t really realize how popular this project was until I heard that Amy will be teaching the guild how to make it at the next Super Sew Day, in July. I also had a clue when Mary C said that a bunch of people bought the pattern and the ruler after seeing Amy’s quilt.

I talked to Amy and offered to help her teach. She hasn’t told me what she needs me to do yet, but I am kind of excited about it. I really need to find some fabrics I want to use. I love Amy’s choices of Tiny Dots and Tiny Stripes, but I don’t want to copy what she did.

The quilt on the cover of the pattern isn’t super appealing and I don’t think the Tula All Stars (if even still available) would work for this pattern.

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Obviously, you should shop at local quilt shops and small businesses. However, if you are too busy or can’t find what you need there, I use Amazon affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item’s link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this blog.

Scrappy Celebration Update

9 Patch with large center
9 Patch with large center

I had planned to get more blocks for this project finished over the long weekend. In the end I only finished one. It has about 50 pieces. I finished a few other projects, so I don’t really feel that bad.

I need to make another one of these blocks and am trying to decide if I will use the same foreground fabric or a slightly different one.

I have about 9 blocks out of the many that I need. As I have said, the piecing isn’t difficult, just a little tedious.

Scrappy Celebration - June 2023
Scrappy Celebration – June 2023

I used this project as leaders and enders while I worked on the Blue strip donation blocks and the Enigma bag.

 

Scrappy Celebration More Detail

Scrappy Celebration EQ8
Scrappy Celebration EQ8

Scrappy Celebration is the name of the quilt I started at the Retreat. This one was not on my list, but I saw it in a recent American Patchwork and Quilting magazine and thought it looked interesting.

It was also easy to ease back into series piecing after creating so many bags.

Scrappy Celebration - first blocks
Scrappy Celebration – first blocks

I was able to make about 8 blocks, but cut a lot more pieces. As you can see this quilt is made up of Nine Patches and Four Patches.

I used some fabrics I bought in Washington when Mom and I went to visit the YM. I had put together a fabric pull to which I added a grey background and I think it looks good. I am going to try to vary the centers from the four patches (top left) so the Nine Patches with Four Patches look more like the block in the upper left corner). I haven’t had time to work on it since the Retreat, but it shouldn’t take me very long in general. The cutting is the worst part.